How do you translate geek?
by hypnoticeyes
Summary: Continuing story! AU/OOC Annie Walker, freelance translator and world traveler, was never very good with computers. Thankfully, August Anderson was. Alternate Universe, just a bit of fun.
1. Chapter 1

"No, no, no, no, no! This can't be happening again! Come on!" Annie Walker cried at her computer monitor to no avail. She moved her mouse around, trying to get it back to the arrow, but it stayed whirring, the little hourglass turning itself over and over. She began to pound on the keyboard. First the space key. Nothing. Enter? Nothing. Escape? Nothing. Not even a beep, not even a snatch of reply from her humming CPU.

She slumped back into her office chair, her hand to her mouth, as she stared at the Spanish text before her. She was nearly done. Just another paragraph, and she'd have this translation project finished. She looked at the clock at the corner of the screen. Just past noon. She needed to have this document printed and sent by FedEx Overnight at least by 5pm.

She wrenched her head away from the mocking monitor, turning in her office chair and letting out a primal scream into her empty house. Thankfully, she lived alone, so no one was witness to her meltdown. Why now? She thought. Her computer, though a handful of years old, had never failed her before. Sure, it was a tad slower than she'd like it to be, but it worked.

Well, most of the time.

God, she thought. What she wouldn't give to work in an office instead of freelance. Then she'd probably have an I.T. team, or whatever they were called, that she could summon on a moment's notice to fix her computer if it broke down. But that would mean giving up her independence. Giving up her freedom and the chance to travel at a moment's notice. Besides, working freelance meant setting her own rates and hours. And working in her own house meant no commute time, no travel expenses, no office wardrobe to drain her bank account dry. Nope, she did what she loved, working at what she loved, and using the proceeds to do what she dreamed: travel.

But now her current dream of traveling abroad next week seemed to be vanishing into thin air as her computer stared at her unresponsively. Tears started to spring to her eyes at the thought.

Suddenly remembering a commercial she'd heard on the radio that morning, she grabbed up the phone to dial a local computer service who did house calls. What was the number, damn it, she thought. Oh, yeah, 1-800-geeks-r-us. She thought it was goofy at the time and kinda ridiculous. I mean, come on, geeks might be "chic" and "in" now, but it seemed everybody was slapping the name on themselves, thinking it meant something.

Annie didn't care one iota whether or not the company called themselves geeks or hobos. As long as they fixed her computer and let her have the five minutes it would take to print the document to send off to her current employer, she'd be happy.

Hurriedly, she dialed the number. The voice on the other end sounded friendly enough, and she'd normally respond with a friendly greeting of her own, but not today.

"Hello, you've got to fix my computer. Today. Now, if possible. Please."

"Excuse me?"

"You fix computers, right? I called the right number, Geeks-r-us?"

"Yes. I take it your computer needs fixed?"

"Yes!" Annie nearly shouted into the phone. Her eyes were still brimming with tears, and she knew her voice was obviously husky and whiny, but she couldn't help it at the moment.

"Okay, okay. If you bring it over day after tomorrow, I can take a look at it."

"Day after tomorrow?" Annie wailed. "No, no, no, no, no. I can't wait that long. And I certainly can't bring it in. it's too heavy."

"Too heavy? I take it you have a server?"

"What's that?"

She heard laughing on the other end and started to feel a touch of anger mixing in with her sadness. "Don't laugh at me."

"Okay, I'm sorry. Let's take this slow. You have a personal computer, correct?"

"Yes, yes, a desktop." Finally, an answer she could give.

"Okay, and it's an older model, I take it, since you can't lift it?"

"Well, yeah, and all the cords and stuff. If I unplug everything, there's no way I'd be able to get it all back together again."

A few seconds silence on the other end before, "Okay, so you're requesting an in-home service then?"

"Yes, of course."

"Okay, then." A few more seconds of silence, and Annie could swear she heard pages rustling. "I've got an open spot next week. Will you be home in the morning?"

"Next week?" Annie squeaked. "But – but – it's all froze and stuff, and I still need to print out my document so I can overnight it to my client. Oh, please." Annie heard herself begging, but she didn't care. If she missed this deadline, she knew the company would just as quickly find another translator, and she couldn't afford to lose a client.

Swallowing quickly against the pain of losing the money she'd set aside for a pair of Christian Loubotins, she said, "I'll pay you whatever you want, in cash, if you can come over now."

"Are you sure? Emergency services aren't cheap."

The guy – she didn't even know his name at this point – sounded so unconvinced, that Annie felt her spirits fall, and the tears began to give way, starting with an audible sob.

"Please."

"Okay, okay. I guess I can close up the store for the afternoon. It's a weekday, and traffic's pretty light at this time. Give me your address?"

Annie felt a fresh spate of tears, this time out of gratitude, and she quickly rattled off her address into the phone. She hung up and went to the bathroom to grab some tissues to dry her cheeks. She couldn't believe she just cried over the phone to a stranger. Her emotions seemed to be on top of her of late, and she couldn't wait until this latest project was done, and she could leave. She'd allotted herself a week to travel, this time to Iceland, and she couldn't wait to soak in one of their mineral pools.

Catching a glimpse of herself in the mirror above her sink, she gasped. In no way was she presentable to receive guests. Her clothing of a t-shirt and yoga pants were respectable enough, but her hair was pulled up in a scrunchie at the top of her head, and her face, free of makeup, was splotchy from her crying. She quickly pulled the scrunchy out and threw it on the floor. She never wore them outside the house, anyway. A quick brush set her blonde hair to rights, and she turned on the cold water and grabbed a washcloth. After pressing it against her face for a few minutes, the blotchiness and swollen eyes were gone.

She went back to her living room where she sat on the couch and waited, staring daggers into the computer screen, the mouse icon teasing her as its hourglass picture spun.

Half an hour later, a knock at her door broke her out of the trance the dancing icon had put her in, and she shot off the couch to answer the door.

"Oh, thank God you're here, I –" the words of thanks died on Annie's tongue as she took in the man standing before her. He was tall, that much she got from her first look at him. But her idea of what a computer geek should look like died right there. He had wavy, tousled brown hair, a tight, muscled body that she could see from the gray t-shirt and tight, dark jeans he wore. He wore Chucks on his feet, too. If she didn't know any better, she'd assume he was a college student.

"Miss Walker?"

His voice brought her eyes back up to his face, and only her manners were able to shut her fly-catching mouth and widen her lips into a smile. "Yes, I'm Annie Walker. Are you the computer geek?"

His face broke into a smile, and Annie nearly felt her knees give way. Her grip on the door handle increased enough to hold her steady, though. His smile. He had a smile that could light up the whole town. His face was angular, too, with just a hint of a tan. Wait, weren't geeks supposed to be pale and pudgy from sitting inside for too long?

The only thing that matched the stereotype of a geek in her mind were his black-framed glasses that he was now pushing up with one finger. The lenses were so thick that she couldn't see his eyes very well, but –

"Yes, I am the 'computer geek,' as you so blatantly phrased it. I guess I didn't introduce myself on the phone. I'm August Anderson, owner and proprietor of Geeks-r-us."


	2. Chapter 2

Annie opened the door wider, allowing him to enter. On his back was a dark khaki messenger bag, its strap over his shoulder and chest. Once he was across the threshold and she shut the door again, she pointed to her workstation in the corner.

Auggie frowned at the sight. It was an older computer, that's for sure. Past its prime more than a couple of years ago. Hell, she even had a clunker of a monitor instead of a flat screen. The desk it stood on was large, as well, surrounded on the floor and on top by books, papers, a few coffee cups, tissues, pens and pencils. Wow, he thought, did she live in that desk chair?

At least she wasn't kidding about not being able to move it or put it back together again, he chuckled to himself. The myriad of wires out the back of it resembled a bird's nest. What she needed, he knew, was a whole new sleek system, not this dinosaur.

He looked over at her through his thick glasses. She stood there, staring at him with her arms across her chest, looking more nervous than he'd ever seen one of his customers. He could swear she was crying on the phone earlier, and her red-rimmed eyes showed that he wasn't wrong.

He was a half-step closer to her before he stopped himself and shook the thought of comforting her out of his mind. Geez, Anderson, he thought, be something of a professional here, huh? With a nod of his head to her, he sat himself in her chair.

"I see you were in the process of writing a document here?" he asked.

Annie walked up behind him, placing a hand on the back of the chair. "Mm-hmm."

The answer came closer than he thought she was standing, and a waft of citrus enveloped him. It was subtle, though, and he had to swallow to get his mind off his customer and on her computer. "Did you try a hard restart?"

"A what?"

Slower and more deliberately, he asked, "Did you try turning it off and on again?"

"Oh, no, I can't," Annie cried. "I can't lose what I've written. I was almost done."

"Well, didn't you save it as you were working?"

"Well, a couple of times, yeah, but when I'm translating, I have to concentrate."

Auggie nodded, so that's what he saw on the screen, he thought. She was a translator. Pages upon pages, according to the Word document, of Spanish language text. "Well, do you at least have an external hard drive?"

She didn't answer, and he turned to look at her. She looked perplexed at his question, so he said, "Did you save it anywhere else but here?"

"No," Annie answered, growing a bit more exasperated at his questions. "Listen, all I need for you to do is to make that pointer thing stop spinning," she said, pointing to the monitor.

Had she not looked so earnest and upset and on the verge of crying – again – Auggie would have laughed at her lack of computer knowledge. He'd had clueless people bring their computers in to him before, people who didn't know anything other than how to turn it off and on, but none of them intrigued him more than Annie Walker.

With a smile, he said, "I'll try to get it from spinning, he said, "but you should be prepared for the fact that you may lose all of your work since your last save."

Annie's hand flew up to her mouth, "Are you sure?"

Auggie nodded, "Yes, but surely you can –"

"You don't understand!" Annie cried, interrupting him. "I'm already spending a lot to have you here. If I don't get this project printed off and in the overnight delivery by tonight, I'll lose my client. And if I lose my client, I lose a good hunk of my current income, and it's so hard to get new jobs nowadays."

She looked so forlorn that Auggie again had to fight the urge to wrap his arms around her. Instead, he reminded himself he'd just met the woman. And besides, most women as beautiful as she was – even without makeup, barefoot, and dressed in a tee shirt and cotton pants – usually had a boyfriend. And those he'd met that didn't were usually turned off by his profession, or when they found out why he wore such thick glasses, suddenly weren't as interested as they were at first.

"I'll do my best to save your work," he said, wondering as the words left his mouth why he was promising something that he knew had only a small chance of succeeding.

"Oh, thank you," Annie said, impulsively bending down and wrapping her arms around his shoulders. The impromptu hug lasted only a few seconds, and she stepped back to let him get to work.

The hug startled Auggie, and he placed his hands on the keyboard after a few seconds of allowing himself the enjoyment of her embrace. At least he knew where the citrus smell was coming from now, though.

Annie took a step back, but kept her eyes on him and the computer. She told herself she just wanted to make sure her work didn't get lost, but she found herself watching him more than the monitor.

Her spontaneous hug – not something she did on a regular basis with strangers – was purely a show of gratitude, but it showed her something else, as well. The muscular build peeking out from the short sleeves of his tee went all the way through to his shoulders and chest. With the exception of his glasses, his looks could qualify him to be a male model, she thought. But then again, she'd seen plenty of models with glasses in fashion magazines, but they weren't thick and hid the eyes beneath.

She hadn't realized how hard she'd been analyzing him until his voice broke through her thoughts.

"You're staring."

"I'm sorry, what?" Annie asked with a small shake of her head.

"The hair is rising on the back of my neck. Do I have something in my teeth?" Auggie asked.

"Oh, no," Annie said quickly. "I was just thinking."

"About what? How much I need a haircut?" Auggie chuckled.

"No, it's just – well, with the exception of your glasses, you don't really fit the definition of a geek."

Auggie's good mood from the banter and slightly sexual tension between them dropped a bit at her mention of his eyes. "Yeah, well, my glasses serve a deeper, more important purpose than solidfying my geekiness," he said.

Annie heard the harsh tone of his voice and immediately knew she crossed a line. "I'm sorry," she said, laying a hand on his shoulder. "That was crass and insulting. I'm usually not so rude, you know. It's just, with this deadline, and the translations, and then the computer –"

Whether it was her soft words or the softness and warmth of her hand through the thin cotton of his shirt, Auggie regretted his kneejerk response. He'd heard so many comments about his glasses and eyesight throughout his life, though, that it was a bit of a sore subject with him.

"It's okay," he said. "I just meant that, without the glasses, I'd be pretty much blind – not that I'm not blind with them," he said, chuckling at his own joke.

"I don't follow."

"I'm legally blind," Auggie explained. "No sight through my right eye at all, and severely nearsighted with my left eye. Hence, the heavy glasses."

"Oh, okay," Annie said.

Auggie continued to work all through their conversation, but at her last couple of words and the minute of silence that followed it, he raised his hands from the mouse and keyboard and turned toward her. Her hand still rested on his shoulder, and as he looked up at her face, she smiled at him.

"What is it? Are you done?" she asked.

"No, no – I mean, yes, I think I'll be able to save your work, but –"

"But what? Do you need help or more information –"

Auggie shook his head, and the corners of his mouth lifted in a smile. "No help, thanks. It's just, most people are full of questions about my sight after they learn I'm legally blind."

Annie shrugged, "I'm sure if you wanted to tell me more, you would."

Auggie nodded and turned again to the computer. She surprised and further intrigued him, if nothing else, and that feeling made him want to work all the more harder to solve her computer problem and remove the sadness from her face.

During the next few minutes, Annie tried to keep her nervousness to a minimum, even when the document she was working on disappeared and her desktop wallpaper appeared. He was working so fast, though, his fingers flying over the keyboard and mouse, that she had a hard time following what he was doing.

"Okay," Auggie said.

"Okay?" Annie repeated. "Okay what? What'd you do? What happened? What was wrong?"

"Well, I could explain exactly what I did to you, but since you didn't know what an external hard drive was –" Auggie teased.

Annie rolled her eyes at him, "Okay, okay, just tell me you were able to save my work."

"If I do, will you hug me again?"

At first, Annie thought he was upset at her previous show of gratitude, but no, a look at his face showed a smile, and as she peered through the lenses of his glasses, she saw warm brown eyes. Oh, wow, she thought. He was flirting with her. And even more astonishing, she felt herself responding.

"I don't know, I generally have a one-hug-a-day rule with guys I just meet."

"Too bad," Auggie said in a low voice. Then louder, "Without going into specifics, I was able to save your document."

"Yay!" Annie shouted, throwing her arms in the air and dancing around in a circle. Then, realizing she wasn't alone in the house, she turned back to him. "I mean, that's great, thank you."

"You're welcome," Auggie said with a laugh. "Now, if you're done celebrating, I do have a few recommendations."

"Oh, right, the external hard drive thingy? Are they very expensive?"

"Umm, depending on what size thingy you want, it can be," Auggie said. "Although what I was going to recommend was a whole new system altogether, with a more up-to-date operating system, online hard drive backup, and yes, an external hard drive."

Annie's face fell. "Now that, I know, is expensive." She sighed. "Are you just saying that because you want my business, or is my computer in that bad of shape?"

"Both," Auggie said simply. Then, as the sadness returned to her large brown eyes, and her mouth turned down again, he added, "You don't have to go out and buy it today, though. I've removed the – well, the problem that caused your computer to freeze, so you shouldn't have that problem again. But since your livelihood depends on your computer, I'd think you'd want to have a more stable system."

Annie nodded. He was right, and she knew that someday she'd have to upgrade, but getting all that stuff he just mentioned meant delaying her travels. "Well, I guess the mineral springs will have to wait 'til later, then."

"I'm sorry, what –"

"Oh, I was just planning on going to Reykjavik next week, but –"

"Iceland?"

"Yeah, have you been –"

"No, it's just – I didn't peg you as someone interested in Iceland, is all."

"Well, it's one of the few places I haven't been yet, but I guess I'll have to wait a bit longer now."

Auggie wanted to continue the conversation and ask about where else she'd been and how often she traveled, but he reined in his curiosity and returned back to their initial subject. "If you want, there's something you can use now as a backup. I guess you don't have any thumb drives, huh?"

Annie shook her head, not even knowing what he was referring to.

Auggie reached into his messenger back at his feet and retrieved one. "This is a thumb drive. Their official name is USB flash drive. It's a small hard drive that can store information, and you can take it with you wherever you want."

"Oh, that's cool," Annie said. "I'd heard of something like that, but never really looked into it."

"It's a failsafe, if nothing else. As you're working, you can save your documents directly onto this instead of the computer's hard drive, then whenever the little pointer thingy starts spinning again, you shouldn't have a problem."

Annie's eyes narrowed at his teasing. "I thought you said you'd fixed the spinning pointer thingy," she countered with a smirk.

"Touche, Miss Walker. I have, but there are other things that can go wrong."

"Okay, so just add the cost of the _USB flash drive_ to your bill, and I promise I'll buy a new computer soon."

Auggie shrugged, turning to her CPU to insert the thumb drive into the USB port. "No charge for the flash drive. I always keep a few of them on hand for emergencies. As for the in-home service charge, if you promise to get your new computer at my place, I can add it to your bill then."

"Why would you do that?" Annie asked.

For a second, Auggie didn't have an answer for her. He'd never offered to do such a thing for a customer before, but then again, he'd never met anyone quite like Annie Walker, either. She had a sweetness and genuineness about her that he found refreshing and, he had to admit, pretty sexy. "Let's just say I want to hear all about your trip to Reykjavik, and I can't do that if you're spending your travel money on other things now, can I?"

"So, you're planning on coming by again after my trip?" Annie asked.

"No," Auggie answered, turning back around to her so he could see her reaction to his proposal. "I'm planning on taking you out for a drink after your trip."

"Oh, you are?" she said, tilting her head to the side. "That's rather presumptious of you, isn't it?"

"Only if you say no, which I haven't heard yet."

Annie smiled and felt a blush color her cheeks at his words. "All right. I'll have a drink with you, but only if you stop teasing me about my lack of computer knowledge."

Auggie stood up from the office chair and swung his messenger bag back over his shoulder. "I promise." Then, pulling his business card from his pocket, he handed it to her. "Stop by when you get back, and we'll set it up."

Annie took the card from his fingers, noting at once the small thrill that traveled through her arm at the slight contact. "I'll do that, August."

"Auggie," he corrected. "I'll see you later?"

Annie nodded, her eyes on him until the door in his wake. Wow, she thought. Not a half hour ago, she was sobbing at the thought of losing so much, and now she had a working computer, her plans for Reykjavik safe, and a date.

But, she thought, all that had to wait. She had work to finish first before she could think about the new cute and funny computer geek she'd just promised to call when she got back from Iceland.


	3. Chapter 3

Auggie Anderson sat back in his chair while the laptop he'd just finished repairing rebooted itself. It was an easy fix, but a rush job, due to be picked up tomorrow morning. Between in-home installations and repair jobs, he'd been kept busy the last few days.

But not so busy as to forget his in-home emergency job last week. He'd been thinking about Annie Walker ever since, wondering if he should call her or stop by to see if – oh, hell, who was he kidding? He just wanted to see her big smile and dimples again.

He'd thought that telling her to give him a call when she got back from her trip was smooth, but he now was regretting it. He should have asked her out for the next day, or that night.

The front door to his shop opened, and he closed his eyes, hoping it wasn't another computer repair customer. He heard Carl, one of his employees, greet the customer.

"Hello, can I help you?"

Annie smiled at the young, eager man as he approached her. "Yes, can you tell me if Auggie's here?"

The young man, clad in jeans and a bright green polo shirt, with a nametag reading "Carl," nodded, "Yeah, Aug's here, but I'm more than capable of helping."

"Carl!"

Annie looked around the shoulder of the overeager employee to see Auggie stand up from behind a desk at the back of the store. He wore the same type of outfit she'd seen him in last week – loose tee and jeans. Carl forgotten, she stepped around him to walk toward the back of the store. "Hey, Auggie."

"Hi," Auggie replied, coming around his workstation to meet her. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Carl's eyes on Annie's backside as she walked. "Hey, Carl, if you want to head on out, I'll close up."

His head jerked up at his boss' words, and Carl nodded and headed to the break room. Their audience summarily dismissed, Auggie turned his attention back to the smiling blonde in front of him. "So, what are you doing here?"

Whatever Annie expected her reception to be, that wasn't it. She blinked, "I'm sorry?"

"That came out wrong," Auggie said, walking up to her and motioning to a couple of folding chairs in the corner. Once they were both seated next to each other, he said, "I'm just surprised to see you. Weren't you supposed to be soaking in mineral springs by now?"

"You remembered that?" Annie asked.

Auggie nodded, though he wanted to add that he remembered everything about that day. What she wore. What she smelled like. What she said, what he said -

"Well, you're right," Annie said, interrupting his train of thought. "I was supposed to be in Iceland this week, but I had to postpone the trip."

"Oh no, it's your computer again, isn't it?" Auggie asked, his face falling with disappointment. He'd so hoped she came to just visit. "Were you able to save your work? Or is that why you're here? The dinosaur finally give up the ghost?"

Annie stopped him with a raised hand. "No, my computer's fine. Actually, it's a good thing, and since you're partly responsible for it, I thought I'd share the news with you."

"How's that?" Auggie asked, a bit perplexed.

"Well, after you left last week, I got my work done and sent it off, and my client was so impressed, I've been given another project to work on," Annie said, not able to keep her excitement out of her voice.

"So that's good?" Auggie asked.

"It's wonderful!" Annie exclaimed, clasping her hands in front of her. "I was offered a permanent contract, which is what I've been wanting for a long time. Freelance is fun and freeing, but one regular customer makes my life much more stable."

"Okay, I'm happy for you," Auggie said with a wide smile. "Really."

"Thanks," Annie said, returning his smile with an equally bright one of her own. "So, I thought I'd stop in, and we could talk about that new system you wanted me to get."

"Sure," Auggie said, his previous disappointment easing a bit. "Then you are willing to give up the dinosaur?"

"Now, what did I say about making fun of my computer?" she asked, raising an arched eyebrow.

Auggie laughed, "No, I promised not to make fun of your computer skills."

"Semantics," Annie shot back. "But you're right. Last week was kind of a wake up call. I can't afford to have it happen again."

Auggie nodded in agreement. "Why don't I show you what's available? And then I can make a customized system for you?"

A question was on the tip of Annie's tongue about the cost of such a thing, but she held it back. She knew she could just go to the local department store and buy one of those computers-in-a-box she'd seen there. She probably could even set it up herself, but if she were honest with herself, she didn't want to.

Beyond the fact that she needed a better system for her work, she really just wanted to talk with Auggie more, and she couldn't think of another way to do so. So, with a nod of acquiescence, she followed Auggie as he stood and walked to the front of the store.

An hour later, Annie's head was full. Sufficiently full of so much computer lingo and tech speak that her mind began to wander. And, considering the view in front of her, it wandered to the muscled body, wavy hair and bespectacled face of Auggie Anderson.

Though she only understand about 25% of what he was saying, the way he said it – with enthusiasm and intelligence – kept her listening and nodding and agreeing to whatever he said. She knew she was interested in the man for more than his computer skills, but given her completely unsuccessful history in the field of love, she was hesitant to act on her interest.

"I can come over tomorrow afternoon to install this for you, if you're free."

Thankfully, Annie had pulled her eyes off of his chest and was looking into his eyes at his last sentence and was able to answer. "Yes, that's fine. The sooner, the better."

Auggie had to bite back a self-satisfied smirk at her words. He knew during his entire speech and explanations that she was only half-listening to him. He felt the same tingle along his skin that he had last week when she was staring at him while he fixed her computer at her home. He could have called her on it again, but he didn't. He rather enjoyed her unabashed interest, and selfishly allowed the unspoken attraction and tension between them to build.

"I can even take away your old system. Unless, of course, you're in need of an oversized paperweight?"

Annie tilted her head at him, "Auggie."

Raising his hands in defense, he said, "Sorry, sorry." The move, though, put his watch in his eyeline, and he noted time had gotten past him, and he should have closed up half an hour ago.

"Oh, wow, I didn't notice the time."

"It's 6. Guess you've got somewhere to go, huh?" Annie asked.

"No, I don't. I usually close by 5:30, though."

Annie nodded, "Okay, I'll get going, then."

She was a few feet away from him and almost at the front door when Auggie found his voice again. "Would you like to have dinner with me tonight?"


	4. Chapter 4

Her hand froze as it was reaching for the doorknob, and Auggie waited with all senses on hyper. He didn't mean to shout it out like that, really. He meant to be smooth and cool when he asked her out, and now he probably killed any chance he had with her by yelling across the store.

He held his breath and waited, crossing his fingers for good measure as she turned around to him.

"Sure, I was just heading out to eat. Want to join me?"

He blew his breath out, uncrossed his fingers, but made sure to inject every ounce of casualness into his voice as he answered. "Sure. Give me a couple of minutes to lock everything up?"

Annie nodded, smiling as he bounced – yes, literally bounced through the store, doing something behind the counter at his desk, then heading into a back room. He soon came back out with the same messenger bag he wore yesterday slung across his chest and a ring of keys swinging off his fingers.

"So, where are we going?" he asked as he shut the lights out and pulled the door shut, locking it securely.

"Just a bar down the street that serves food, too. You don't mind, do you? I didn't think to ask if you drank."

Auggie fell into an easy step beside her. "Yeah, I drink. I also run every other day and lift weights. I don't do drugs, and I'm clean."

Annie's eyes widened, but she didn't react to his obvious teasing and flirtation. "Good. I run, too, but on a treadmill. I don't do drugs, and I take a shower every day, as well."

Laughing, Auggie said, "Good to know, but that's not exactly what I was referring to."

"I know exactly what you were referring to, Auggie, but considering we've spent only a total of two hours together, don't you think it's a bit presumptuous to assume – well, what you were referring to?"

Auggie shrugged his shoulders, but didn't answer. Just the fact that they were embarking on their first date cemented in his mind that he and Annie would soon be spending more time together. He was intrigued by her yesterday when she was nearly in tears over her frozen computer, but when she'd hugged him after he fixed it, he knew she was something special. Plus, the fact that he'd caught her several times checking him out showed that he wasn't the only one affected.

Another block down the street, and they were in front of a nondescript bar that seemed to have been here forever. Annie crossed in front of him to open the door, but he got to it first. "Allow me," he said, ushering her in with a hand to the small of her back.

The touch was slight, but it was only the second time they'd had contact since the hug of yesterday, and once they were inside, Auggie left it there.

"Hey, NFL Girl!"

Annie smiled at the greeting, raising her hand to wave back at the proprietor who was busy pouring a pitcher from the tap. She approached the bar, not bothering to make sure Auggie was following, as his large, warm hand was still gliding along her lower back.

"The kitchen open tonight, Hank?"

"It's open every night, darling," Hank replied, setting the full pitcher on the counter for his customer. "And if my memory serves me correctly, you want the fish sandwich, right?"

"That's right. Can you make it two, and a pitcher of what you were just pouring?"

"You got it."

Auggie listened the whole exchange with growing wonder as to who this man was, why Annie seemed to know him so well, and how often Annie visited the place to have a "usual." She led them to one of the booth seats – red leather and shiny wood table.

He waited until the brimming pitcher was sat on the table, along with two mugs, to ask.

"So, NFL girl?"

Annie was pouring the beer out for them and slid one across to Auggie. "Oh, that's just Hank. Nicest guy in the world."

"Uh-huh," Auggie said, not quite convinced as he took a drink.

Annie took note of how he said those two not-quite-words and sighed. "I started coming here in college," she explained. "Hank runs numbers for all the college football games. He asked me if I wanted in on the action, but I told him I didn't follow college football that much, and I usually watched NFL games. Hence, NFL girl."

He didn't look too convinced, though, as he kept his eyes on his beer as he twisted the mug between his hands. Annie reached across the table and placed one of her hands on his. The action moved his eyes up to hers. Even through the thick frames and lenses, she could see his worry.

"Hey, it's a little early to get jealous."

"Jealous?" Auggie asked. "I'm not jealous."

"Would you feel better if I told you he's married to a lovely woman who bartends here on the weekend and has five children?"

Auggie laughed and shook his head, "Okay, I was jealous."

"You have nothing to be jealous of, Auggie. I'm not seeing anyone right now, and if I were, we wouldn't be doing this. I have a strict no-cheating rule," Annie said. And in her mind, she added, well, I would if I dated more regularly, but if I did, I wouldn't cheat on the guy.

"Good to know," Auggie replied as she removed her hand from his and took a drink from her own mug. Since it was so early, the place wasn't too full, only a few other people at the bar or in booths. "I can't believe I haven't been here before."

"Yeah, since your shop is just a couple of blocks away. But if you live out of the city, I guess you wouldn't have seen it."

"No, I live in the apartment above my shop," Auggie said.

"Really?"

"Yes, really. I can't drive at night, so I needed a place I could walk to when I close the shop."

"Why can't you –" Annie started to say before stopping herself. She figured it had something to do with his sight, and given how he'd reacted when she mentioned his glasses yesterday, she didn't want to anger him again.

Auggie watched how she stopped talking and suddenly became interested in the color of her beer. He had a feeling she was going to ask him why he couldn't drive at night, but then censored herself. "Hey, you can ask me anything."

"No, it's okay. I don't want to make you mad."

Auggie shook his head. This wasn't going as smooth as he hoped, and they weren't going to get anywhere in what he hoped was a burgeoning relationship if certain topics were considered off topic. "Hey," he said and waited for her gaze to return up to his. "I was born without the sight in my right eye. My left eye was perfectly fine until I hit high school when my vision started to blur. I've been going steadily more and more nearsighted ever since. With the glasses, I can see perfectly well – well, halfway well, actually, but I'm only allowed to drive during the day and in my own car, which has been equipped with a few more mirrors to account for lack of peripheral vision."

She took all the information in and gave him a small smile. "Thanks, but you really didn't have to –"

"Yes, I did," Auggie interrupted. "Though I don't normally go around giving my life story, I wanted you to know."

"Why?"

Cocking an eyebrow at her, Auggie said, "Isn't it obvious?"

Annie's answer was interrupted by the arrival of Hank who sat two overflowing plates in front of them. "Going to introduce me to your boyfriend here, NFL Girl, or are you planning on keeping him all to yourself?"

Annie looked up from the delicious-smelling plank of deep-fried fish sandwich between a large crusty roll to see Hank smirking down at her. "I was going to introduce you, Hank, but you looked busy. This is Auggie Anderson. He owns Geeks-r-Us down the street. Auggie, Hank Matthews, who owns – well, this place."

Hank stuck his large hand out to Auggie, who tore his bewildered gaze off of Annie's face to shake hands. "Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you, too, Auggie. Since you're just down the road, you should stop in more often. Though, if you're with our Annie here, I guess you'll be as regular a customer as she is."

As Hank ambled away, Auggie returned his bewildered gaze to Annie, who by this time had picked her sandwich up and was preparing to take a bite. "What?" she asked.

"You did hear him refer to me as your boyfriend, right?" Auggie asked with a smile.

"Umm, yeah, I did," she said, taking a bite of her sandwich.

Auggie, however, refused to let the curious turn of phrase go. "And you didn't feel any urge to correct him. Interesting."

Annie rolled her eyes and waited until she chewed and swallowed before answering. "It's just Hank, Auggie. I didn't want to embarrass him or you by pointing out the fact that we just met yesterday."

When he didn't say anything, she shook her head, "Just eat your sandwich."

"Whatever you say, sweetheart."


	5. Chapter 5

Annie sat at on her couch the next afternoon, watching as Auggie crawled beneath, above, and all around her massive desk, disconnecting her current computer. She told him when he arrived that she wouldn't tolerate any remarks about her current setup. He did promise with an easy smile and a squeeze of her shoulder.

A squeeze that she still felt now, 15 minutes later. Yep, she told herself, she was smitten. She'd tried to tell herself she just had a crush, but it went a little further than that, she knew. This was out-and-out attraction. One that started yesterday when Hank had called Auggie her boyfriend, and she didn't feel the need to correct him. Auggie teased her about it all through the dinner, but she refused to be baited.

Until, of course, they had walked back to his shop/apartment and her car parked in front. He'd kissed her good-bye, telling her to drive safe. The kiss was nothing more than a hesitant brush across her lips, but damn, did he taste sweet. She almost jumped him then and there.

But she knew she'd see him again, and here he was, on his hands and knees crawling under the kneehole of her desk to extricate the keyboard and mouse wires. She could hear him talking to himself as he worked, and she smiled. He wasn't making fun of her setup, only talking himself through his work.

Also, the position he was in now gave her a view of a wide expanse of his back as his shirt rode up. The muscles she'd felt across his shoulders, she noted, went further than his biceps.

Auggie tried to concentrate on his work, talking himself through his tasks to keep his mind on them, but it was proving difficult. As soon as he arrived, Annie had taken up her current position on the couch with a mug of coffee and had been watching him ever since.

He'd wanted to point out that she was staring again, but in truth he enjoyed it. Just as he enjoyed being called her boyfriend last night. She didn't correct Hank at all, and that to him meant that she was as attracted to him as he was to her. And that she'd allowed him to kiss her before going home was the final stroke. Whether she liked it or not, Auggie was going to be in her life long after he set up her computer system.

Which he'd get done a lot sooner if she quit staring at him like an oasis in a desert. Suddenly, he got an idea. "Hey, Annie?"

"Yes?"

"Could you grab a flashlight and give me a hand? It's a bit dim back here, and I can't see all that well." Well, it was mostly the truth, he thought. Her tastefully placed lamps made for a lovely ambience, but didn't give any light behind her desk. She soon walked up to him, flashlight in hand.

"Okay, just shine it here, please. Thanks."

Annie did as instructed, but found she couldn't watch him as closely as she did before. With a disappointed frown, she asked, "I'll still have all of my old files, right?"

"Yep, I transferred everything to the external hard drive first. It's a full terabyte, so you'll have more than enough room to backup anything you need."

"Okay."

Auggie glanced up at her expectantly.

"What?"

"Nothing," he said with a smirk. "Just waiting for you to ask me what a terabyte is."

"It's a thousand gigabytes, right? It goes byte, kilobyte, megabyte, gigabyte, terabyte."

"Impressive, Miss Walker. I have a feeling you were just joshing me that you didn't know anything about computers."

Annie rolled her eyes at him, "There's a difference between knowing how to operate a computer than knowing how to put one together, you know."

Auggie nodded and resumed his duties. He finally got all of the wires and connections disconnected and separated, and he stood. Something, unfortunately, that proved to be difficult given the cramped space and Annie's closeness. Even so, she wound up brushing up against him as she stood, as well.

The movement made them both jump slightly, and Auggie reached out and caught her elbow before she stumbled.

"Sorry," she said softly.

"Don't be," Auggie replied. "I've been trying to get you in my arms since last night."

Even in the dim light, he could see her cheeks redden a little, and he decided to step back with the flirting until he got her computer set up. "Well, do you want to keep this dino – I mean, do you want to keep this CPU and monitor, or do you want me to take it back and recycle it for you?"

"You can recycle this kind of thing?"

Auggie nodded, "It can be reused and repurposed."

"Sure, then," Annie said, stepping back and resuming her position on the couch. As he hefted the CPU in his arms, she had an unexpected wave of loss. "You did make sure to get everything off of there, right?"

Auggie stopped on his way to the door and turned back to her. "Yes, I said I did. Don't you trust me?"

"Of course I do, it's just – that was my first computer, and –"

"As of now, it's just a bunch of metal and plastic. Anything useful it contained is in that little black box there," he said, nodding his head to the hard drive sitting on her desk.

And as he walked out with her CPU, Annie got up and went over to the "little black box." She picked it up, feeling the weight of it. How can something so small, the size of a paperback book, hold a terabyte worth of information, she thought. Setting it back down, she shook her head at herself. Maybe Auggie was right in his jibes at her lack of computer skills.

Auggie walked back in to take her monitor out to see her leaning against her desk and frowning. "What is it? Annie, I promise you haven't lost anything. I double-checked."

"Oh, I know you did. It's just – I feel so useless, not knowing what you're talking about half the time."

"Useless? Where's all this coming from?"

Annie shrugged, and Auggie immediately walked up to her, tucking a finger under her chin and pulling until her eyes met his. "I know more about computers than you because I've studied them for over a decade now and have a couple of degrees in computer science. Besides, this is nothing compared to what you do."

Annie's eyes narrowed as she tried to quell the shivers coursing through her from his nearness and touch. "Why, what do I do?"

"Well, I know you're fluent in Spanish, but how many other languages do you speak?"

A small smile came to Annie's face as she whispered, "Five."

"Excuse me, I didn't quite hear that."

"Five," Annie said louder. "I can list them for you, if you like."

"No, thanks. Don't want to be showed up that much," he said, taking a step back. "Now, let me get that monitor out of the way, and we can start unpacking boxes." He clapped his hands together and rubbed them in anticipation.

Annie laughed, "You look like an 8-year-old who's just woken up Christmas morning."

"Yeah, but this time, it's you who'll be getting the presents."

* * *

><p>Half an hour later, Annie's fingers were on her cordless mouse, clicking on everything that showed on the flatscreen monitor in front of her. Auggie sat patiently beside her, explaining the new operating system's layout and where everything was located. He also helped her set up her webpages and e-mail accounts. He usually didn't spend this much time with his customers, but who was he kidding? He usually didn't go out to dinner with his customers or kiss them good night or come close to kissing them twice now during an install.<p>

"And what's this?" Annie said, hovering the cursor over an icon on the desktop.

"Skype," Auggie answered. Then at her blank gaze, he explained, "See this hole up here?" He pointed at the top of her monitor. "That's a webcam, and you can video chat with anyone else with a Skype account."

"Do you have one?"

Auggie nodded, "Yeah, most laptops and systems come with webcams as standard features anymore."

"No," Annie said with a smile. "Do you have a Skype account?"

Auggie returned her smile with enthusiasm. "Yes, I do. Would you like to video chat with me?"

Annie knew that question wasn't anything close to be sexual, but she felt herself reacting as though it were. She took a deep breath to calm her nerves before saying, "Well, I'd like to try it, and I'm not sure who else I know that has one."

"I'll set you up an account," he said, pulling the keyboard over to in front of him and opening up the program. After a few minutes, he had her set up, along with her username of "Princess Anne." She scoffed at first, but he refused to change it.

"And how will I find you? Do you have, like, a username or something?"

"Yep, it's A-Squared."

"Clever," Annie said.

"I thought so, too. Now, do you have everything you need?"

"Yeah, I guess so. It's not much different than my old one, so I shouldn't have a problem. Sorry for keeping you here so long. I guess you have to get back to your shop."

"It's not a problem. I left Carl in charge," Auggie said, standing up.

"Okay, let me get my checkbook, and we can get this settled," Annie said, pulling open a desk drawer and retrieving her leather-bound wallet. She glanced again at the invoice Auggie had given her and set about writing out a check.

"You can wait to pay me, Annie. Most people just drop it by the office or mail it in, or –"

"No, I'd like to get this done and over with."

Feeling almost dismissed, Auggie nodded, "Oh, okay, then."

Annie wrote the piece of paper out quickly and tore it from the checkbook. Standing up, she handed it to Auggie, who, without meeting her eyes, folded it in half and slipped it into his pocket.

"Okay, then, I guess that's it. You can call me anytime you need help, although you really shouldn't –"

Auggie's good-bye was cut short as Annie stepped up to him and reached up to his face, or more specifically, his glasses. She began pulling them off, and he grabbed her wrists to stop her. When she shook her head, he let her pull them off and place them on the desk behind her.

"Annie, what are you doing?"

"Well, our professional business is over, right?"

Auggie nodded.

"And if I'm not mistaken, over the past two days, you'd be interested in something closer to a personal business relationship?"

Auggie nodded again.

"Well, if you don't mind, I'd like to start now."

"But why did you take off my glasses?"

"Because I wanted to see what you looked like without them," she confessed, raising her hands to trace his cheek and jawline. "You're okay without them, right? I mean, you can have them back, but –"

"I'm fine."

Auggie didn't have the heart to tell her that his nearsightedness allowed almost perfect vision in his left eye for anything within a foot of his face, which of course, she was right now. And such a vision she was. At a distance, with his glasses on, there was no mistaking her beauty, but up close was decidedly different. He could tell the blonde shade of her hair was streaks with darker strands. Her brown eyes – wide and expressive – held flecks of gold in them that shone in the lamplight. And her lips. If he was any good at poetry, he's sure he could find a few dozen adjectives to describe them.

But he didn't want to at this moment. All he wanted to do was lean his head down to her lifting one and kiss her, accept her kiss in return. The brief taste he'd had last night wasn't nearly enough for him.

Annie kept her eyes open as she lifted up on tiptoe to reach him. Her hands rested on his shoulders for balance. She was almost mesmerized by the unobstructed view of his eyes. They were warm and expressive, and though he said he couldn't see out of his right eye, it was perfectly functional, moving in synch with his left one. Maybe later she'd ask him for more details about his sight, but she didn't really want to know. Not right now. Right now, all she cared about was how firmly his mouth fit over hers. He'd tilted his head at the last minute, and his mouth was fully upon hers.

After a few nudges and brushes, his arms came around her back to pull her up against him, He pulled back half an inch, and she felt the hesitant touch of his tongue against her lower lip. She immediately responded – could she do anything else?

His taste was intoxicating, and after obliging his request, she moaned softly as he swept her mouth. He was both persistent and holding back, and she found herself grateful for it. After pulling back for a breath, she let herself back down on her heels.

"Wow."

Auggie laughed, "Yeah, that about sums it up."

"I guess you have to go, huh?"

Nodding, Auggie relished a few extra moments of her in his arms before loosening his grip. "Can't leave Carl alone too long."

Annie took a deep breath before extricating herself completely from his arms. "So, this Skype thing, huh?"

"Yeah."

"I'll be able to see you and talk to you, huh?"

"That's the general idea."

Annie turned around and retrieved his glasses, handing them back to him. "Then I guess I'll see you later tonight?"

"Until then, Princess Anne."

"Good-bye, Auggie."


	6. Chapter 6

Auggie shouldered open the door to his shop, Annie's old CPU cradled in his arms. The place was quiet, and he shouted out to Carl to give him a hand. The young man's head popped up behind a display, and he walked up to him.

"About time you got back. I was about to put out a missing persons report," Carl said, taking the CPU from his boss' arms.

"It's only been a few hours, Carl," Auggie replied. "Help me bring in the rest of the stuff, and then you can head out."

Carl sat the CPU on the back table and then trotted back through the store and out the front door to take the monitor out of the back of Auggie's car. "Never had an installation last that long. Something go wrong with the setup?"

"Nope, standard stuff," Auggie said.

"Then it took three hours because –"

"Because it took three hours, Carl. What are you inferring?" Auggie asked.

Carl smirked as he walked through the store and set the monitor beside the CPU. Auggie brought in the rest of the components and laid them alongside. Carl had worked in the office for a couple of years now – full-time during the summer and part-time during college – but never had he seen his boss smile as much as he had in the last week. He had a hunch he knew why, but the length of time he was gone today during the install proved it.

"Not inferring anything," he said with a shrug. "Just glad to see you out there, you know?"

"What are you talking about?" Auggie said, leveling his gaze at the young man.

Carl rolled his eyes. "Come on, Aug. For the past week, something's been off about you. I didn't ask about it, 'cause I figured if it were important, you'd tell me. Then that blonde came in yesterday –"

"Her name is Annie."

"Then Annie came in yesterday," Carl corrected, "and you haven't stopped smiling since. And before you tell me nothing's going on, since when do you take care of walk-in customers?"

Auggie was about to answer when Carl interrupted.

"And since when do you close up the shop like you did last week to do in-house calls? And since when does an on-site installations take three hours? It's almost time to close up."

Auggie wanted to disagree, but given that everything Carl said was the truth, he didn't know how. "Okay, Carl. Put your investigative hat back in the drawer. Yes, I'm attracted to Annie Walker. Yes, I believe she likes me, too. We've already had one date, kind-of, and I plan on Skyping with her tonight."

"Wow, don't move too fast there, buddy," Carl joked, but when Auggie took a step toward him, he backed off, raising his hands in defense. "Only kidding, boss. All I'm saying is, it's about time. If you didn't go out on a date by Labor Day, I was going to set you up with a girl I know."

Auggie shook his head at the man. "I'm good, Carl. Thanks for your interest in my sexual well-being, but believe me, I'm good. No need to set me up."

"Well, I know that now. Listen, it's about time to close up. You want me to catalog this, or –"

"I'll take care of it. Why don't you head on out? I'll see you later."

"Okay. Bye, Aug."

With Carl out of the way, Auggie settled himself at the table. He'd planned to wipe the hard drive of the computer clean and make it reusable again, but usually it's a task he let Carl handle, considering how menial it was.

But he found himself now with hours to go before he planned on seeing Annie again, and he knew he needed something to take his mind off that fact. A sudden thought came to him, and he pulled out his cell. He told Annie he'd contact her on Skype later, but never gave her a time.

He pulled up her contact info – patting himself on the back that he actually remembered this time to get her number – and sent a quick text.

_9p okay tonight?_

A few minutes later, his cell beeped back with a reply.

_Can't wait. You'll be my first_

Auggie's fingers shook as he read her answer. Was she intentionally engaging in double entendres, or was she unaware of how her answer sounded? He decided to find out.

_I'll be gentle_

Her reply answered his question.

_Auggie, that's not what I meant_

_I know, couldn't resist. 'til then, Princess Anne_

Then, with a permanent smile plastered on his face, he set about working on her old computer.

* * *

><p>Annie sat before her computer at 8:55pm, waiting expectantly for Auggie to Skype her. She giggled at the thought. Is that even the phrase? She didn't know, but figured Auggie would clue her in once he came online. She'd opened Skype and logged in and waited. Her own face stared back at her from the monitor, and she took a moment to check her appearance.<p>

Not sure of Skype protocol, she wanted to look her best. Not going-out-on-a-date best, but she was sure Auggie didn't want to see her as she usually looked when she was home alone. Hair pulled up in a messy ponytail, no makeup and faded t-shirt. She'd even taken a shower a half hour ago, if only for her own comfort.

So she sat, combination earpiece and microphone hooked over her ear and mug of tea in her hands, waiting for Auggie to give her a call. As the minutes ticked by, she wondered if her actions this afternoon had maybe put him off her. After all, she did make the first move by grabbing him and kissing him. But, she remembered with a smile, he didn't seem to mind too much. He'd kissed her back with almost as much fervor, and she knew if he didn't have to return to work, they might have continued.

Slow down, Annie, she thought to herself. After all, she'd only met Auggie a little over a week ago, and altogether, they'd only spent a handful of hours together. She knew a few things about him, and he knew a few things about her. But other than the fact that she knew he was attracted to her as she was to him, and that he was a great kisser, she knew little else.

A ding from her computer drew her out of her thoughts, and she looked up to see that A-Squared was giving her a call. She accepted it, and within a few seconds, the smiling face she'd been thinking about appeared on her monitor.

"Good evening."

"Hey, Auggie."

"Congratulations on making your first Skype call."

"Thanks. I don't feel so innocent anymore."

Auggie laughed, "Not going to touch that one. So, how was your day? After I left – what was it, four hours ago?"

Now it was Annie's turn to laugh. "Good. I set up my workspace and started working on my next project."

While she talked to him, Annie took in what she saw on the screen. "Where are you?"

"In my living room, why?"

"It looks like you're on a couch or something."

"That's because I am. I've got my laptop here," Auggie said, lifting it up to show her how it moved.

"Oh, okay. I was thinking of getting one, but I'm comfortable here."

"If you did get a laptop, we could do this in other areas."

Annie blinked, "Like what?"

Auggie shrugged, then smiled, "Oh, you know, other places in the house."

Annie shook her head at his obvious teasing. "Auggie."

"What?" he said, laughing.

"You're such a flirt."

"Not really. Guess you bring it out of me."

Taking a drink from her mug, Annie sat back in her chair and propped her foot up on the seat. "I was thinking, you know, if we're going to do this, I'd like to know a few things first."

"If by 'this' you mean going out, talking, kissing, then by all means, ask whatever you want."

Annie blushed a bit at his mention of their kiss, but smiled to cover it. "Well, don't you think we should know more about each other? I mean, all I know is that you're a computer geek, and all you know about me is that I'm a translator and a world traveler."

Auggie grinned, "I'd like to think we know a little bit more than that, but you're right. How about I start?"


	7. Chapter 7

"Well, why don't I start from the beginning? Born and raised in Chicago."

"Mm," Annie said, nodding. "I know."

"How? I never said anything."

Annie smiled, "Your accent. You've hid it well, but it still comes through sometimes."

"Ahh, it's the linguist in you, huh?"

Annie shrugged, "Continue."

"The youngest of five boys, but I guess you knew that, too, huh?"

"No, of course not. But you've got four older brothers?"

"Yep."

"Do they all look like you?" Annie asked.

"You mean tall and ruggedly handsome? A couple. We take after my dad. The rest take after my mom, she had red hair and green eyes. Now, can I continue?"

"Please."

"All my brothers are or were in the military. I, of course, grew up wanting to do the same, but you know," he said, waving his hand in front of his face. "You couldn't imagine how upset I was when I was told for the first time that I couldn't enlist."

"That must've been difficult, given how everyone else in your family was able to follow their dreams."

Auggie went quiet for a few seconds, and given how his gaze suddenly drifted off, Annie realized she must have touched a nerve. She wanted to say something, maybe apologize, but didn't want to pry too much farther than he was willing to give. Within a few more seconds, though, his eyes lifted and met hers again through the monitor.

"I was angry, yes, but soon got over it. I had skills, knowledge. I'd always been good with computers, technology, so I grabbed onto that with both hands."

"I'm sorry I brought it up."

"No need to apologize, Annie. You wanted to know more about me, and it's a big part of me. My family – well, my brothers kept – well, keep trying to get me into the government, doing private work for them, but I turned them down."

"Why?"

"I love what I do," Auggie said with a shrug.

"Same here," Annie said. "You set your own hours."

"Yep."

"Work as hard or as light as you want."

"To a point, yes. So I guess we do have a lot in common."

"Maybe," Annie said.

"Just maybe, huh?"

"Well, you come from a big family. I've only got my sister."

"Okay, but –"

"I've visited over 50 different countries in my lifetime, and I bet you've never set foot outside of the U.S."

"Untrue," Auggie said, holding up his hand.

"Really" Annie said, cocking an eyebrow. She sat her mug of tea down on the desk and leaned forward, propping her elbows on the smooth wood. "Where have you been?"

Auggie mimicked her movements, leaning forward until his face filled the screen. "My family went to Niagara Falls when I was 16."

He looked so earnest, Annie didn't want to laugh, but she couldn't help but smile. "Oh, well, then, I take it back."

Auggie shook his head, "You know, it sounds an awful lot like you're talking yourself out of having a relationship with me."

"No!" Annie said quickly. "I want to be with you!"

"Really?"

Realizing she'd been had – again – by the smooth-talking man smiling at her through her monitor, Annie clenched her fist. "Auggie!"

Not being able to hold back his laughter, Auggie said innocently, "What?" Then, as she continued to glare at him, he said, "Okay, how about we just ask each other questions?"

"Okay," Annie acceded, "you first."

"Umm, favorite color? Mine's red."

"Green. Favorite type of music? Mine's jazz."

"Same here."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. I'll take you to a concert sometime. They have them in the park near here during the summer."

"I'd like that."

And, as the sweet light came into her eyes again, after his teasing of her, Auggie continued, "Favorite book? I read everything."

"Wow, impressive. I prefer biographies, non-fiction, travel books."

"No surprise there. I'm sure you could write a few books, given everywhere you've gone."

"Okay, my turn –"

"Other than Spanish, what other languages do you speak?" Auggie interrupted.

"Excuse me, it's my turn."

"Come on, I'd really like to know."

Finding herself at a decided advantage, Annie decided to turn the tables on her smooth-talking, flirtatious new friend. "Yo puedo hablar español, ruso, italiano, francés, persa y turco. Me gustaría que pudiéramos hacerlo en persona en lugar de a través de un ordenador, porque me gustaría que te bese de nuevo."

Picking up her tea to take a drink of the cooling beverage, she watched his reaction. At first, his eyebrows rose, then his forehead wrinkled a bit. Then he smiled. It wasn't a friendly smile, but a knowing one, and Annie froze in the midst of swallowing her tea.

"Así que hablan español, ruso, italiano, persa francés y turco, ¿verdad? Clase de español fue hace mucho tiempo, pero me gustaría que estuvieras aquí, también."

As the tea slid down her throat in a well-controlled swallow, lest Annie completely choked, she said, "You didn't say you spoke Spanish."

"Well, we are getting to know one another. Want to come over?"

The question came without a smirk, without a tilt of the head to show he was teasing her, and Annie felt her heart melt. "I'd love to. But I can't. I – I've got this project to get started on, and the deadline –"

"It's okay, Annie. But this weekend?"

Annie nodded, "It's a date. Do you want me to come by when you close up Friday night? 6:00, right?"

"That'll be fine. I'll cook."

"You can cook?" Annie asked.

"Yes, I can cook. Are you surprised?"

Annie shook her head, "Nothing about you surprises me anymore, Auggie. I look forward to it."

"'Til then, Princess Anne."

Shaking her head at her new nickname, Annie said, "Buenos noches, Auggie."

* * *

><p>Excuse the translations, I used Google Translate.<p>

Annie said: I can speak Spanish, Russian, Italian, French, Farsi and Turkish. I wish we could do this in person instead of through a computer, because I'd really like to kiss you again.

Auggie replied: So you speak Spanish, Russian, Italian, French, Farsi and Turkish, was it? Spanish class was a long time ago, but I wish you were here, too.


	8. Chapter 8

Carl nearly dropped the box of blank DVDs. "What?"

Auggie dropped his head to his chest. He should have known not to confide in his employee. "I said I can't come out with you and your friends after work tonight because Annie's coming over."

Before he completely let destroyed of the merchandise, Carl set the products on the shelf and walked back to his boss. "Annie, the blonde chi—woman who came in earlier this week, and who you said you really like, is coming here, to your apartment upstairs?" When Auggie nodded, Carl's face broke in a wide smile. He whistled low. In all of his four years of working at Geeks-r-Us, he'd never known his boss inviting a woman to his apartment. He knew he'd dated, gone out, but it's never been more than once or twice with the same woman. And as far as he knew, none of them ever crossed the man's threshold.

"So, she's coming over. For dinner, I guess?" Auggie nodded again. Carl asked, "You did clean the place, right?"

"Yes, of course," Auggie said, meeting Carl's eyes.

"You've put up all items that could be construed as offensive?"

Auggie rolled his eyes, "I don't keep porn lying around, Carl."

"I know you don't, Aug, but is Annie the type of woman who would enjoy coffeetable books about manga anime?"

"Oh, I don't –"

"Or your Superman figurine collection?" Carl pressed.

"Come on!"

Carl raised his hands in defense, "I'm just saying, Auggie, you don't want to scare her off too fast, do you?"

"No, of course not," Auggie said, thinking hard. He'd been planning this evening for the past two days, ever since Annie accepted his invitation two nights ago. He'd decided what to wear, what food to prepare, and even a selection of movies.

But he never thought of how Annie might actually perceive him or his apartment. His first thought is to just wing it and hope Annie was a lover of sci-fi memorabilia, too, but he quickly pushed that thought away. She was far too sophisticated and world-wise for that. Did he really want to scare away the one woman he'd finally felt something for all these years?

"Carl, can you watch the place? I'll be right back."

* * *

><p>At precisely 5:55pm, Annie opened the door to Geeks-r-Us and stepped inside. The display floor was empty of anyone, and she took a couple of steps inside, looking around. She swallowed nervously, smoothing her hands down her white sleeveless summer dress. She hoped Auggie didn't mind her dressing up, but she figured this was a date, right? Even if it was just upstairs in his apartment, and he was cooking for her.<p>

Suddenly the door at the back of the shop opened, and Auggie walked out. Annie's mouth dropped open slightly. She'd never seen him in anything but a t-shirt and jeans, but now he was walking toward her in a crisp white button-down, tucked into tight black jeans. He still work his Chucks, though, and she smiled.

"Hi."

"Hi," Auggie replied, never stopping as he steadily advanced on her.

Annie felt rooted to the spot, and as he comes within a foot of her, she has to angle her neck up to meet his eyes. Then they blurred as his head descended towards hers and his lips brushed over her mouth.

When he stepped back, Auggie smiled and said, "Sorry, but I've been wanting to do that –"

"Yeah, me, too," Annie replied.

"Are you ready to go?"

Annie nodded, and he opened the door to the shop, ushering her out. When he'd secured it, he took her hand and led her around to the side of the building. A nondescript door stood halfway down, and Auggie unlocked it and walked in.

Annie squeezed his hand in anticipation as they climbed the lit stairs. She couldn't see anything yet that screamed "Auggie" at her, and she couldn't wait for him to open the door.

A small landing with one closed door was soon in front of them, and Auggie let go of Annie's hand to unlock and open it, ushering her in first. She took a couple of steps in, and once Auggie had flipped a switch, his apartment came to life.

Auggie watched as she looked around, wide-eyed, at his apartment. She could see everything, save the bathroom, with one glance from where she stood. Though it took quite a bit of repair work, he was able to convert the former dance studio to a livable place a few years ago. The hardwood floors and open space appealed to him. The far wall was his "bedroom" area, the near area the "living" area which held his couch, tv and computer desk, and the kitchen and dining table took up the rest of the space.

"Why don't you make yourself comfortable?" he said, motioning to the couch. "Are you thirsty? Can I make you some tea?"

Annie sat on the black leather sofa and said, "Yeah. How did you know I prefer tea?"

Auggie winked at her while he walked to the kitchen. "You were drinking it the other night while we were Skyping."

While he busied himself, Annie took another look around the spacious apartment, noting the details. Beautiful hardwood floors, free of carpets. White walls with no paintings or posters or pictures on them. The color palette was simple, as well, with black sofa and armchair, glass and silver tables.

Even the bed she could see in the far corner – a king-size, no less – was draped in a dark grey comforter.

Auggie brought her the mug and laid it on the table in front of her. "I don't know how you take it. Do you need sugar or –" His words stopped as took in the look on her face. Her brow was furrowed, and she was frowning. "Is anything wrong?"

"No, not really. It's just –" she waved around at the décor. "It looks different than I expected."

Remembering the box of books and paraphernalia he'd stashed under his bed, Auggie straighted up, rubbing his suddenly damp hands on his jeans. "What do you mean?"

"It's beautiful, really, but it looks more like an hotel suite than a single guy's apartment," Annie said with a shrug.

Sighing, Auggie shook his head at himself. Realizing he couldn't do this anymore, he said, "Wait here a minute."

Wondering what he was doing, Annie picked up her tea and took a sip. When he dropped to his knees by his bed, her eyes widened. What was he doing, she thought.

Pulling out the heavy box, Auggie took a deep breath and picked it up. Well, he thought, it's now or never. He walked back over to the couch and sat the box on the floor, taking a seat beside Annie.

Without a word, he began pulling items out and setting them on the table in front of them. The books were first, and he placed them on the table. He was reaching for the first of his figurines when Annie's hands reached out and stopped him.

"Auggie, what is all this?"

"It's my stuff, what I have lying around, hanging up. I – I didn't want you to think I was this overgrown boy, or a nerd or –"

Annie pulled his hands out of the box and tugged on them until he was turned to face her on the couch. "I know you're not a boy or a nerd. You're a geek."

"Annie, come on –"

Shushing him with a hand on his cheek, Annie waited until his eyes met hers. "You're my geek, and what makes you think I wouldn't like all of this stuff?"

The warmth of her hand settled his nerves a bit, and he half-smiled at her. "Well, I didn't see any sci-fi books at your place, and the only thing you had on your shelves had nothing to do with superheroes."

"That's because you never saw my bedroom," Annie said, cocking an eyebrow.

"You mean –"

"Well, I don't have quite the collection you seem to have," Annie said, peeking into the box between them. "But I have been to a couple of Comic-Cons in my life."

"Oh, my God, seriously?" Auggie asked, scooting closer to her. "When?"

"Not the past couple of years, 'cause it's interfered with my schedule, but I first went during my senior year in college with some friends, and then the year after that, and –"

Her words were cut off as Auggie's lips crashed into hers. After the initial shock, she raised her hands to his shoulders as his cupped her jaw. Though sudden and not with as much finesse as when they'd kissed after he'd installed her computer, Auggie still tasted sweet to her. Like cinnamon and coffee.

For Auggie, she tasted of sunshine, citrus and the tea she obviously had just taken a drink of. She also lit something within him, and he had to fight an urge to pull her to him again, onto his lap, and never let go. He had to remind himself that this was only their second date, and though she felt like a welcome rain after a drought, he couldn't push this.

"Hey, Auggie?"

"Yeah?"

"I'll start putting all this stuff back if you want to start making dinner."

Dinner? Auggie thought. What's dinner? Then, as she pulled his hands off her face and leaned forward, pulling the box toward her, Auggie remembered. "Oh, yeah, dinner. You like stir fry?"

"Sounds great."


	9. Chapter 9

Auggie pulled the vegetables and cut-up chicken he'd prepared earlier from the fridge and sat them on the counter, then grabbed the pan and set it to warm on the stove. While it heated, he turned and leaned against the counter, watching Annie as she unpacked the box.

She obviously didn't know anything about manga, he thought, given the frown on her face as she arranged the large books on the table. But when she got to his other collectibles, the frown disappeared and was replaced by a small smile.

"Those go on the shelf above the computer."

Annie nodded and filled her arms with the various Superman figurines. Most were small, but she couldn't help but smile at the largest. Two foot tall and heavy, the piece was Superman, or rather, of Clark Kent, peeling away his suit to reveal the "S" on his chest.

She glanced over at Auggie, who'd begun dropping the vegetables into a pan. Looking back at the figurine, she thought he somewhat resembled the caped crusader's alter ego, with the dark hair, muscled body and thick glasses. Though she knew Auggie didn't have laser vision or the ability to fly, he certainly came her rescue last week.

When she was done, she joined him in the kitchen. "Mm, that smells delicious."

"My specialty," Auggie replied with a wink, grabbing a piece of carrot from the pan and popping it into his mouth. "So, I take it you like Superman, too, huh?"

"Yep."

"I figured as much. Brandon Routh, right?"

"Hardly," Annie scoffed.

"Ahh, old school, I like it."

Opening the fridge door again, he pulled out a bottle of wine and sat it on the counter. He rummaged in a drawer for the opener. "If you'll takea seat at the table, I'll bring everything over."

* * *

><p>15 minutes later, her plate nearly empty, Annie picked up her half-full glass of wine and sat back in her seat, regarding the man across from her. "So," she said, "why did you think I wouldn't want to see your stuff?"<p>

Auggie finished chewing before he answered, "Carl."

"Carl?" Annie asked. "Oh, the guy who works for you?"

"Yeah. He meant well," Auggie said. "He knew I'd never invited someone over before, so –"

"No one?" Annie asked, nearly choking on a mouthful of wine. "You mean you –"

"I've dated before, but –" Auggie shrugged. "Never really met someone who held my attention for that long, or she wasn't all that into me."

"Were they put off by –" Annie asked, not really wanting to fnish her question, but wanting the answer, all the same.

"If you're asking whether or not some of them bolted once they found out I'm half-blind, then the answer is yes."

"I'm sorry," Annie said.

"It's not your fault."

"No," Annie said, leaning forward. "I'm sorry you had to meet so many bubble-headed women."

Surprised at her statement, Auggie asked, "Bubble-headed women?"

"Yes, for being so shallow, they're bubble-headed. Stupid, to tell you the truth."

"Thanks," Auggie said with a genuine smile.

She returned it and continued sipping on her wine. When a few more seconds of silence passed, she put her wine glass down on the table. "So, then, what made you invite me up here?"

"Angling for compliments now?" Auggie smirked.

"Oh, well, no, not really –"

Auggie laughed at her stammering. "I thought it'd be obvious."

"Well, it was, until you said no one else has ever been here."

A flash of uncertainty crosses her face, and Auggie knew she wasn't just fishing for accolades. It's what intrigued him about her in the first place, and with that thought in mind, he decided to tell her. Picking up the bottle of wine, he refilled her glass and his own and slid his chair closer to her.

He took one of her hands in his and looked into her soft brown eyes. "Remember when you called, asking me to fix your computer?" he asked.

"Of course I do."

"I've met people upset about their equipment failing, but you seemed so sad. Then, when I got to your place, you were so distraught, that I almost wanted to pull you into my arms and make your sadness go away."

"Yeah, I was pretty pathetic, huh?" Annie said with a frown.

Auggie shook his head. "Not pathetic, no. Genuine and honest. And beautiful. I almost kicked myself when I got home and realized I hadn't gotten your number or left you mine. Then you walked back into my shop. And I knew I'd do anything to make you mine."

"Wow," Annie said.

"Now I'm the one who sounds pathetic, right?"

"No," Annie said, looking down at their entwined hands, his thumbs drawing small circles on her palm. "That's pretty much what I was thinking when we first met, too."

"Really?" Auggie asked with a smile. "You thought I was beautiful, too?"

"No, I mean –" Annie said before laughing. "You see, that's what I like about you. You make me laugh."

Auggie pouted, "That's it? I bare my soul to you, and all I get back is, I'm a comedian?"

Annie can see he's joking with her again, but she can tell, through his touch and the soft pleading in his eyes that he needed to hear this. If anything, she thought, to show him that those other women were the blind ones.

"From the beginning, huh?" Annie asked. "Well, on the phone, I thought you were a bit rude, but you did agree to come over right away. And then when I saw you – I mean, damn, Auggie, you do own a mirror, right? But you listened to me and calmed me down and fixed my computer and saved my work. And then –"

Annie sighed, "Auggie, I really don't know how to express all this. You're cute and funny and smart. I like being around you, and I want to be around you for a long time. Is that enough?"

His chest swelling with the emotions that she was conveying, if not her words, Auggie said, "For now." He let go of one of her hands to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear. "You had enough to eat?"

Annie nodded.

"Then bring your wine glass and join me on the sofa."

Auggie brought the bottle and set it along with his own glass on the coffeetable before heading over to the TV.

"Are we going to watch a movie?" Annie asked.

"Yep."

"Don't tell me, it's the original 'Superman.'"

"Nope," Auggie replied, sliding the DVD into the player before joining Annie on the couch. As the menu came up, Annie gasped in delight.

"I can't believe you have a copy of 'Amelie.'"

Auggie shrugged with nonchalance, "I'm full of surprises."

Sliding her sandals off, Annie tucked her legs under her and settles back, her head nearly touching Auggie's shoulder. He took the not-so-subtle hint and raised his arm so she can tuck into his side. "Did I tell you I've been to Montmartre?"

"I figured you might," Auggie said. "Tell me about it?"

As the movie played, Annie provided commentary – some informational, some silly – about the places she'd been that were in the movie. She also talked about the other places she'd visited in France, the cities, and how she'd walked the entire of Paris her first time there. She didn't want to miss anything and figured a bus tour or rental car wouldn't provide her with the same experience.

Auggie hung onto every word, living vicariously through her detailed stories. They'd continued to talk even after the movie had ended, and it was only when he'd reached for the wine bottle again that they realized they'd emptied it between them.

Given the late hour and Annie's apparent inebriation, she sighed. "I'm probably too far gone to drive home, huh?"

Auggie's bed in her peripheral vision teased her, and given her loosening inhibitions due to the alcohol and Auggie's proximity, she knew it was too soon to take such a step with him. The promise of their burgeoning relationship was way too important.

Auggie leaned down the few inches to where she was tucked into his side, his arm around her shoulder, and kisses her softly. He can see, though, in her eyes the same reluctance he was feeling to allow what was happening between them to go too far, too fast.

"You can take the bed," he whispered against her lips. "I'll sleep on the couch."


	10. Chapter 10

Annie pulled back from him a few inches to look more fully at him. "I can't take your bed."

Auggie's lips tilted up in a half-smile. "Please, let me be a gentleman about this."

Remembering her previous image of Auggie as her favorite superhero, Annie smiled, "Like Clark Kent."

"Clark Kent?"

Annie nodded, "With your glasses, you remind me of Clark Kent. And with your body, I mean, hello, Superman."

Auggie chuckled as his ego got a much-needed boost. "Really?"

"Mm-hmm," Annie murmured, her eyes glancing down swiftly, then back up again. "In fact –"

As she reached up and pulled off his glasses, Auggie knew he should stop her, but she was like his Kryptonite, and he was unable to resist.

"Is this okay?" Annie asked. "I mean, can you see well enough like this?"

Auggie raised a hand and smoothed his fingers around her hairline and down her jaw. "Actually, this close, I can see you perfectly."

His touch, the rumble of his voice as it got low like it was now, and the obvious loosening of well-placed inhibitions made Annie's base desires flare up. "Well, then." With a minimum of effort, she pushed against his shoulders until his head hit the armrest. She followed him down, mainly because his arm was still wrapped tightly around her back.

The new position – half on her side on the couch and half on him – threw Auggie a bit off balance, and he pulled his legs up on the couch to keep himself from falling off. He couldn't lie to himself that he didn't mind this new position, but didn't they just silently agree to take things slow?

"Annie," he said in a half-warning, half-wondering tone.

"Shh," Annie said. "Just relax."

Auggie did, shifting slightly until he was more comfortable in the new position. When he settled, Annie did, as well, laying her head against his chest and placing her arm around his middle. After a few minutes, he peered down to see Annie's eyes have now closed, and a look of contentment was on her face.

He raised his hand to pull a few strands of hair off of her face and tuck them behind her ear. A purr of satisfaction emits from her, and he continued until her breath evened out, and he knew she was asleep.

* * *

><p>Annie woke to find herself alone on the couch. Still half-inebriated, a feeling of confusion washed over her until the memory of falling asleep in Auggie's arms came back to her. A look at the time showed only an hour had passed since the movie ended.<p>

But where was Auggie? He was no longer on the couch with her, and his bed looked exactly as it did before. The bathroom door suddenly opened, and Auggie walked out, wearing nothing but a pair of black sleep pants that hung low on his hips.

"Auggie."

The sound was something of a strangulated whisper, and Auggie turned on his way to his bed to see he'd gotten caught. Coming back to her on the couch, he said, "I was hoping I wouldn't wake you up."

Remembering her previous near-attack on the man by pushing him down on the couch and wrapping her arms around him to force him to say, Annie felt a slight wave of embarrassment come over her. "Oh, sorry."

"Hey, no," Auggie said, crouching down beside her. "It's just – I needed to brush my teeth before I went to sleep."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I've got an extra one – brand new, of course – if you want to."

Annie nodded, as she realized she should probably wash her face, as well, and use the facilities, as the half-bottle of wine she imbibed was making itself known.

Auggie held out his hand to her and led her to the bathroom, pointing out the toothbrush and toothpaste. Annie soon got her ablutions finished, and as she was rinsing out her mouth, a knock sounded at the door.

She opened it to find Auggie standing there, a t-shirt and sleep pants that matched his in his hands. "I didn't know if you wanted to change or –"

"Thanks," Annie said, taking the bundle from him. A few minutes later, she opened the door and stepped out. The place had changed a bit. Auggie had obviously used the time she was in the bathroom to straighten up, as the empty wine bottle and glasses were gone, the tv was off, and, she could see, the bed had been turned down.

He was nowhere near it, though, and she turned to see him sitting on the couch. Annie took a minute to think. She didn't want to push this – whatever this was that was building between them – too fast, but she also knew that falling asleep in his arms made her feel more relaxed and cared for than she ever felt in her whole life. With more bravado than she thought she had, she took a couple of steps toward Auggie, her hand extended.

Maybe it was the fact that her hair now fell upon her shoulders, or that her skin glowed where she'd washed it, or maybe even that she looked very hot and desirable in his clothes. It could have been all of those reasons, or another, more deeper one, but all Auggie knew at that moment was that he was standing up and crossing the room to take her offered hand.

They parted to climb in on opposite sides of the bed, each settling into their respective favorite positions – Auggie on his left side and Annie on her right. When their eyes met not a foot from the other, they both smiled.

Annie opened her palm as it lay between them, and Auggie slid his hand into it, curling her forearms together as they closed their eyes and fell asleep.


	11. Chapter 11

Annie woke with the thought that they were having an earthquake. Erratic movements shook the bed. Opening her eyes, she noticed her surroundings were not her bedroom at home. A few seconds after the last of the sleep left her brain, and she remembered she'd fallen asleep in Auggie's bed after drinking too much wine.

The rest of the room wasn't moving, though, just the bed. She turned over, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. Auggie lay splayed out beside her, obviously in the midst of a dream, given how his legs were thrashing and his head was moving side to side.

She reached over to touch his shoulder. "Auggie."

He's stumbling in the darkness. That's all he knew, searching for the light, but never finding it. He knew it was there. All he could think about was finding it. He had to keep moving forward. An unseen hand touched his arm, and he heard a voice calling his name. It's echoing, though far away, but he knew the voice and the hand were the same. He stopped walking and turned toward it.

"That's it, Auggie. Wake up."

Wake up? Auggie shook his head in confusion. Why is his dream telling him to wake up? The hand lets go, and his own reaches back for it. Where did it go? Reaching, reaching, and his fingers find it again. Warmth, smooth skin in the darkness. A sudden, insatiable urge to feel more of it overcomes him, and he pulls it closer, finding the warmth in a body, soft and full of curves. He envelops it with his arms, inhaling the scent.

"Auggie, open your eyes."

The voice seemed closer now, and he shook his head in disagreement. He didn't want to release the warmth. Though darkness still surrounded him, he felt less lost in his dream's arms, her scent, her voice.

"Please, you're scaring me. Open your eyes."

He froze in the embrace, panic washing through him. His dream was frightened. That's something he could never have, and with shuddering deep breath, he allowed his dream to fade away, keeping tight hold of the voice, the softness.

"That's it, now open your eyes."

Hands were stroking his face, and he lifted his own to them before opening his eyes. His limited vision slowly came into focus as the last of the darkness fled. Consciousness then came swiftly as the first sight that welcomes him were warm brown eyes and a worried face.

"Annie."

She nodded and breathed a sigh of relief. "You were dreaming. What happened?"

Auggie shook his head, releasing her hands to reach for her shoulders and pull him down across his chest. "I'm sorry I scared you."

From her new position with her head tucked between his neck and shoulder, Annie said, "You did, but just a little. I couldn't wake you up."

Her hand drifted across his bare chest over his heart, where it was still beating frantically. "Does that happen often?"

"No, thankfully."

"Tell me about it?" He'd taken a deep breath, and Annie leaned back a bit to see his face. "You don't have to, but I'd really like to know."

"Sometimes I have a dream – or a nightmare, really – that I've completely lost my sight. Everything's black, and I keep stumbling around, searching for the light."

"Oh, Auggie," Annie whispered, laying her head on his shoulder.

"It's okay. I know eventually my left eye will completely fail or get so bad that even my geeky glasses won't be of any help."

An unbidden giggle rises up in Annie's throat, but it's mixed with a sob at his dilemma when it escapes her lips.

"Hey, don't worry," Auggie said at the sound. "It's not going to happen for quite a while, according to the doctors."

"Really?"

"Really."

She leaned back again, almost sitting up, and braced herself by placing her hand on the bed beside him. "Then why the nightmare?"

"I don't know," Auggie answered. He wish he knew. Turning his head, he saw through the window that dawn was only just breaking, the faintest hint of pink lighting the low-hanging clouds. "It's still early. You can go back to sleep, if you want."

Annie shook her head. "I'm awake now. Coffee?"

"Okay, I'll get it."

Annie moved back over to her side of the bed and tucked the blankets around her waist. Her eyes naturally moved to the sight of Auggie walking effortlessly across the room to the kitchen. Feeling his bare torso under her while they embraced was one thing, but seeing it now in its full glory, including an extra swath of skin as the pants rode low on his hips was something else.

His sleep-tousled hair completed the picture, but what drew her eyes the most, though, was his shoulder, or rather the back of it, where a tattoo she hadn't noticed before was evident.

A stylized black ink Superman emblem blazed just above his shoulder blade.

"Shouldn't that tattoo be on your chest?" she teased.

"I was wondering when you'd notice," he said, turning and winking at her as he pulled the coffee from the cupboard.

"Got anymore?" she teased.

"You'll have to find that out on your own."

Annie laughed and stretched her arms over her head. She hadn't slept that soundly in a long time. Except for the unusual wake up, she couldn't remember having such a wonderful night.

"While you're doing that, I'll just use the bathroom," she said, untangling herself from the sheets and walking across to the closed door.

When the click of the lock sounded, Auggie took a deep breath and forced himself to relax, watching the coffee brew. Though the dream was completely gone, the feeling of being lost in darkness still clung to him. It'd been almost a year since he'd had that dream. He'd woken in a cold sweat that time with the sheets tangled around his legs and a feeling of foreboding that lasted all day.

Now he'd only had a slight memory of what he'd seen and felt, and he'd be lying to himself if he said he didn't know what the reason was. Annie's presence and soft touch helped him, pulled him from the blackness.

The bathroom door opened, and Annie walked over to him. "Coffee done yet?"

Auggie nodded and quickly pulled down two mugs from the cupboard. He filled them, but before Annie could reach for hers, he took her outstretched hand in his. He wasn't even sure why. He was moving on instinct at this point.

"Annie, I know we've only known each other for a couple of weeks now, but I just want you to know that this – what's between us – is real and important and means more to me than anything else."

Struck dumb by his sincerity, Annie stared at their clasped hands. He'd always been joking or flirting or teasing in the past, and this sudden emotion-filled statement threw her. She knew from the moment she'd opened the door to him all those days ago that she'd wanted him in her life, but hearing her own emotions and desires mirrored back to her nearly stopped her heart.

"Auggie, I – I truly don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything, but if you do, make it quick. If you're about to turn me down and say thanks for a good time, I'd like to know now, but –"

"Oh, no, I wouldn't say that!" Annie exclaimed, her eyes flying up to his.

Auggie smiled, "As I was saying, I would like to know now, but I don't think you're the love 'em and leave 'em sort."

Annie shook her head.

"So this is for the long haul?"

Annie nodded.

"Good. Just for that, I'll let you have the Superman mug."

"Who needs the mug, when I've got the real thing right here in front of me?"

Auggie rolled his eyes.

"Too cheesy?"

With a chuckle, Auggie picked up her mug and handed it to her. "Here, drink this, then we can figure out what to do this weekend. Unless, of course, you've got a project to work on?"

"I know, I know," Annie said, taking a drink of the hot brew. "That's been my excuse every other day, but I made sure to schedule some free time."

"And that free time was – this weekend?"

"Yep."

"A bit presumptuous on your part, don't you think?"

"So says the man who three minutes ago proclaimed his want to spend the rest of his life with me."

Auggie nodded, "You're right. I do. Starting with today."


	12. Chapter 12

Annie was enjoying a well-deserved free evening when her phone rang. It was her home phone, not her cell, so she didn't get the usual thrill when she knew Auggie would be on the other end.

"Hello?"

"Annie! Are you sitting down? Please tell me you're sitting down."

"Hi, Dani. Yes, I am sitting down."

"The loan went through! I'm a business owner!"

Annie felt a surge of happiness and excitement fill her at the news. "Oh, my god! The catering business?"

"Of course, the catering business, silly! Oh, this is so exciting. But I've got so much to do! Step number one is deciding which dishes to use, so tomorrow night, dinner, my place, 6:00, don't be late!"

"Oh –" Annie didn't want to say anything to bring Danielle down from her high, but she and Auggie had been getting together nearly every night, either at the other's places, or on the phone, or Skyping.

"Dress up! This is a celebration, okay?"

"Umm, okay, Danielle, you mind if I bring someone?"

"Sure, the more, the merrier! I gotta go, sweetie. So much to do!"

"Bye, Danielle."

Annie hung up the phone, feeling a weird mix of elation for her big sister and trepidation of having Auggie meet her family and friends so soon. Granted, it'd only been a few weeks, but this past weekend's activities cemented the fact that they were in a relationship, and the affection was mutual.

She giggled at herself at the phrase that just popped up in her head. Affection? She thought. No, all-out attraction, bordering on near obsessiveness on her part. After being single for most of her life – with the exception of a boyfriend here and there – Annie now couldn't go a day without seeing him or at the last hearing his voice. She'd worry about how fast they were moving, had Auggie not expressed the same feelings to her.

Now thoughts of taking their relationship further filtered into her thoughts every so often, and she almost whimpered when they parted for the night after engaging in some rather heated makeout sessions.

As if he knew she was thinking about him, she heard her cellphone ring. After this past weekend, she'd changed his call tone to the Superman theme.

"Hey, Auggie."

"Hey, beautiful. How are you doing?"

_Well, I just got wrangled into accepting a fancy dinner date for the both of us, where you'll meet my family and friends, and also, I've been wanting to jump your bones for a few days now._

"Fine, just fine. How are you?" Even as the words came out of her mouth, Annie knew he'd call her it.

"Annie, come on, what's going on? You sound upset."

Annie sighed. "No, not upset. It's just – my sister just called, and she's having a dinner tomorrow night, and I – well, I kind of said I'd be there, and I'd be bringing a guest."

"Ahh, I'm the guest, then, huh?"

"I'm sorry. I really should have asked you first."

"Think nothing of it. I'd love to meet your family."

Annie breathed a sigh of relief. "Really?"

"Yes, really. Why would you think I wouldn't accept?"

"You haven't met my family," Annie muttered. Then, "It's at 6, and she said to dress up. She likes to make a big show of everything."

"Sounds perfect. Can you drive?"

"Sure, I know you have trouble driving at night. Thanks, Auggie."

"You're welcome. Now, onto more important things. You up for a Skype session?"

"Of course."

* * *

><p>At precisely 5:45 the next night, Annie pulled her red VW in front of Auggie's storeapartment. At almost the same time, Auggie stepped out the door, pulling it shut and locking it behind him. He turned and saw her pull up, and a wide smile lights up his face.

Annie was immediately struck dumb, complete with open mouth and all. Her eyes never left him as he walked across the sidewalk, opened the passenger door and slid in. Thankfully, she shut her mouth as he leaned over to kiss her hello, but as he pulled back, Auggie saw the "deer caught in headlights" look on her face.

"Something wrong?"

Far from it, Annie thought, as her eyes take him in from head to toe. He had, indeed, dressed up, from the dark red silk shirt that stretched across his shoulders, complete with dark tie and slacks. It far outshone the white shirt and slacks he'd worn on their first date, and Annie had to swallow quickly or risk drooling on her new dress.

Even his brown, wavy hair had been tamed a bit. But what really shocked her was his lack of glasses. She thought him handsome with the "Clark Kent" look, but without, and dressed to the nines as he was and smelling as good as he did, he was drop-dead gorgeous.

"Who are you, and what have you done with my boyfriend?" she breathed.

"Boyfriend, huh?" Auggie asked with a smirk. "I like the sound of that." Leaning over again, he closed her still gaping mouth with a searing kiss. "Shouldn't we get going?"

Annie nodded and automatically started the car and pulled out. She couldn't help looking over at him, and finally when she couldn't hold her curiosity any longer, she asked, "Where are your glasses?"

"Home," Auggie replied. "I'm wearing contacts. Or contact, actually," he said with a laugh. "I'm more comfortable wearing the glasses, but tonight, I wanted to make a good impression."

She didn't reply, or at least laugh at his little self-depracating joke, so Auggie looked over at her. She seemed to be overly concentrating on her driving, with her breath coming in and out heavily, and her hand clenching and unclenching on her thigh.

He couldn't help the smile of satisfaction that graced his lips at her obvious reaction to him. His reaction wasn't dissimilar, as his eyes trail over the tight, dark pink silk dress she's wearing. One arm was completely bare, and the material was gathered across her chest as it stretched over the other shoulder. An idea came to his mind to ask her to turn the car around and head back to his apartment, where they could –

He shook his head at the thought. No, he can't think of that now. This dinner, obviously, was important to her, and he'd have to cool his libido for now.

* * *

><p>The dinner progressed smoothly, despite Danielle's obvious attempt to hook Annie up with a friend of hers. Obviously, Annie's mention of bringing a guest the night before had Danielle believing it was a girlfriend of hers. Auggie's presence threw a slight wrench into her plans, and she whispered an apology to Annie before they all sat down.<p>

However, the seating arrangements had already been made, and Annie found herself seated between Auggie to her right and her so-called new "suitor" to her left. Annie tried to ignore him, and made sure to whisper in Auggie's ear and hold his hand throughout the first and second courses, but it didn't persuade Greg or Craig or whatever his name was to stop trying to engage her in conversation.

Auggie did his best to charm Danielle and her husband, Michael, and Annie felt a surge of pride at how he'd integrated himself into their little group so readily. She was thinking of ways to thank him later when Danielle stood up to grab another bottle of wine.

Annie thought they'd all had more than enough. She limited herself to one glass since she'd be driving home, but Auggie had accepted a refill, as did Danielle, Michael, and a handful of the other guests.

Now they were all raising their glasses again as Danielle made her way around the table. Annie was intent on finishing the delicious cheesecake, else she would have been able to catch Danielle's faux pas. All she knew was that she heard Danielle's voice, slightly slurred given the amount of wine she herself had drank.

"Come on, Auggie, are you blind or something? Lift up your wine glass so I can fill it."

Annie's head jerked up as she saw Danielle standing to the right of Auggie, a joking smile on her face, her hand waving the bottle in front of her.

Before Annie could think of something – anything to say, Auggie's posture froze, and his countenance darkened. His head turned around so he faced Danielle head-on, and the iciness in his voice chilled the jovial atmosphere in the room.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, Danielle, I am blind. Legally blind. I cannot see out of my right eye, and I can only see out of my left with the aid of glasses or contacts, which I am wearing now."

The look of horror mixed with shame and embarrassment came over Danielle, and Auggie couldn't hold back the deep-seated frustration and anger that came over him. It'd been a while since he'd been so crassly insulted, and the fact that it'd happened now, in front of a woman that he was growing to love, her family and friends, was the last straw.

"If you'll excuse me, everyone."

"Auggie, wait," Annie said, nearly tripping over her chair in an effort to push back from the table to follow him. He was too quick for her, though, and she soon heard the front door slamming.

"Danielle! How the hell could you be so rude!"

"Annie, honey, I didn't know, I swear! You never said anything. He never said anything. Hell, you never even said you were seeing someone."

Annie shook her head at her sister, "That still doesn't excuse your behavior. I'll talk to you tomorrow." Annie grabbed her purse and wrap from the side table and quickly left, hoping Auggie hadn't gotten too far.

Her heels clicked across the porch and down the steps, her eyes searching everywhere for him. And then – there, on the sidewalk, stood Auggie, his back straight, but his head hung down to his chest, and his fists clenched by his sides.

"Auggie!"

He turned at the sound of her voice. "Pathetic, aren't I? Can't even storm out, 'cause I can't see in the dark."

Annie caught up to him and cradled his face in her hands. "No, you're not. Danielle's the pathetic one. She always did have a big mouth, even more so when she's drunk."

"I'm sorry for ruining your dinner."

Annie scoffed, "It's not my dinner, it's Danielle's. I was just there for the free food and handsome company."

Auggie placed his hands on hers as they cradled his face. "What did I do to deserve you?"

"Fixed my computer," Annie said.

Auggie chuckled, "You mean you wouldn't have agreed to go out with me if I had lost all of your work?"

They were standing close in the dim light thrown from the streetlamp, but Annie didn't see anything other than Auggie's soft brown eyes looking directly into her own. "We'll never know now, will we? Just think what would've happened if Carl had taken the call that day."

Auggie laughed and wrapped his arms around her, bringing her flush against him. Her own slid around his neck. Taking a deep breath of her now-familiar and intoxicating citrus scent, Auggie whispered into her hair, "I love you, Annie."

Annie's breath came in and stayed there as his words crept through her and settled in her heart, which now beat loudly against her chest. His arms tightened just a bit around her back, and she swore she could feel his heartbeat echoing her own.

"Auggie, I –"

Shaking his head, Auggie pulled back from her. "Shh, can we just go home now?"

Annie nodded her head, afraid to speak, though she wanted to shout her own proclamations to everyone within hearing distance. There'd be time enough later, she thought, when they were alone, and preferably naked, in bed.


	13. Chapter 13

They'd opted to go to Auggie's place, as he needed to remove his contacts before going to sleep, and he hadn't brought his glasses with him. Annie didn't mind. His whispered words of "I love you" still rang in her ears, and she so wanted to tell him how she felt, as well. But not like this.

Not in the midst of family drama and turmoil and hurt feelings. She did, however, keep her hand grasping his as she drove – letting go only to shift gears. During the short ride, she kept glancing over at him, making sure he didn't have that set jaw that she knew signified his anger. But it never reappeared. He looked calm and relaxed, and his thumb running over her knuckles was a soft caress.

When they got to into his apartment, he excused himself to the bathroom. Annie sat on the couch, and as she waited for him, her cell began to ring.

"Hello?"

"_Annie, it's Danielle."_

"I know. I have Caller ID."

"_Sweetheart, please don't be mad at me."_

"Why wouldn't I be?" Annie scoffed. "You insulted the man I love, in front of all of our friends."

"_I know, I know. Listen, is he there? Did you drop him off at home yet? I really need to talk to him."_

"I am here, with him at his apartment, and I'm not sure I want to let you talk to him."

Auggie had opened the door right as Annie answered the cellphone, and by her side of the conversation, he'd surmised that she was talking to her sister. When she referred to him as the man she loved, his fingers clenched against the wooden frame of the door.

Then he walked over to where she was sitting on the couch. "Annie, it's okay."

"Danielle, Auggie's here," she said, reaching up to grab Auggie's hand and pull him down next to her. "I'm putting it on speakerphone."

Annie pressed the speaker button and held the phone between them.

"_Auggie, I'm sorry."_

Auggie could hear the tears in the woman's voice, and he instantly felt ashamed of his own behavior. "It's okay, Danielle."

"_No, no, it's not. What I said was inexcusable, and I'm not asking to be forgiven."_

"Oh, okay," Auggie said, a bit bewildered. Then why had she called?

"_Annie's never brought a guy home, even when we were in school."_

"Dani, come on," Annie said.

"_Annie, let me do this. Auggie, as I was saying, she's never brought someone home before, and when you showed up tonight, it really threw me. You are handsome and charming and funny. I can see what drew her to you. What I said was rude, no matter who I would have said it to."_

Annie heard her voice choke up, and she felt her resolve to give Danielle a week-long silent treatment weakening.

"_I was so intent on making a good impression that I did the exact opposite, and –"_

Auggie had heard enough. "Danielle, you can stop," he said softly. "I should apologize, too. I overreacted. You had no idea of my blindness, I know. It's just a sensitive subject, one that Annie's been helping me out with."

Annie smiled at him and gave his fingers a squeeze.

"_So you'd be willing to let me make it up to you? Take both of you out to dinner next week?"_

"Of course," Annie and Auggie both answered.

"_I'm so happy to hear that. Good night, you two. Love you."_

"Love you, too, Dani. Good night." Annie ended the call and slipped the phone back into her purse.

"So, are you staying the night?"

The question was so full of hope, that Annie nearly fell in love with him all over again. The thought, on top of the emotional rollercoaster she'd been on all day, nearly brought tears to her eyes. She'd thought the moment he'd held her under the dim light of the street lamp was the most romantic thing she'd ever experienced, but seeing him now, holding her hand gently and asking her – yes, asking her if she'd like to spend the night, caused something more.

Her heart thumped once in her chest loudly, before settling back down. His light touch on her hand and knuckles rolled up her arm and across her shoulders, lighting every nerve ending as it traveled down her back and settle throughout her body.

Though she hadn't meant for him to hear her tell Danielle she loved him, she knew he'd heard her. With an inhale, she stood, pulling him up with her via their clasped hands. She stepped slowly and with careful intent across the room until they reached his bed.

A tug on his hand, and she turned him around, pressing on his shoulders so he'd sit. He kept his eyes on her, and for a moment, his intent gaze nearly caused her to stop. Then he smiled, and she took a step back.

First she stepped out of her shoes and kicked them out of the way. Then her hand reached up to her shoulder and pushed the soft material off onto her upper arm. Auggie's eyes never left hers, and by the time she'd reached behind her for the zipper, her skin tingled with anticipation. Her breathing deepened as she thought, if just him looking at me has this effect, I'll probably spontaneously combust once he touches me.

Her fingers sought and found the zipper in the middle of her back, and it had traveled a couple of inches down when he suddenly moved.

Auggie's own emotions had been on such a high the last few hours, he had almost felt that he was in a trance when Annie had hung up the phone. He'd willingly followed her over to his bed, and he let himself be pushed onto it.

Only when she began undressing – no, making that stripping – in front of him that his brain finally overcame his base desire and need. His libido nearly cried and shouted when he'd jumped up and placed his hands on her upper arms, stopping the material from dropping any further than the few inches it already had.

"Annie," he groaned. "You don't have to do this."

The corners of her mouth slipped down from the seductive smile to one of almost anguish. Her eyes looked frantically around, looking anywhere but at him, and her arms came from behind her back to hold up the slipping material.

"Oh, okay, I thought – well, I guess not – maybe I'll just – yeah, okay," she stammered out, and soon Auggie found himself clutching air as she walked away from him toward the bathroom.

In the split second that followed, Auggie's libido, desire and need soundly knocked the gentleman in him upside the head and took over. Two long steps, and he was beside her again, taking her by the arm and spinning her around.

She protested the sudden movement, and indeed, maybe later Auggie might have thought he could have done this with more finesse, smoother, but he was running on instinct now. His other hand came up to her face and angled it upward, and his mouth crashed onto hers.

It could have been romantic, sweet, a kiss to end all kisses as they came together. But the built-up need and raw desire didn't allow anything soft at the moment. Annie struggled to grasp onto him while keeping her dress from slipping to the floor, leaving her in nothing but lace panties. Auggie couldn't get enough of her and didn't even stop kissing her lips, tasting her, inhaling her scent when his glasses went askew on his face.

Their knees knocked against each other, and Annie was tripping over her shoes that she'd kicked to the side. All Auggie knew was that his hands were full of the bare, silky skin of her back, and he couldn't get close enough to her.

Annie soon gave up on trying to clutch her dress to her and touch Auggie at the same time, and she threw her arms around his waist, pressing herself into him. When his lips finally left hers, only to travel up her cheek and into her hairline, she pressed her face into his chest.

She couldn't seem to get her breath back, and she took lungfuls. The much-needed oxygen cleared her vision and she realized she was in Auggie's arms, nearly naked, with his hands exploring every inch of her back from shoulder blades to her waist. She tried to save what was left of her modestry by pressing herself into him to cover herself, but it was having the opposite effect.

His desire was evident against her abdomen, and her own need was coiling tight in a corresponding part of her anatomy. She was at an impasse, and she didn't know what to do.

He could feel her trembling in his arms. Whether it was from fear or desire, he wasn't sure, but he soothed her, just the same, running his hands slowly over her back, trying to quell his want to explore more. With one final kiss to her hair, he said, "You can wear one of my shirts if you want, they're in the dresser."

Annie smiled against his shirt, her eyes closing at the thought that he was leaving the choice up to her. He'd be willing to let her walk away and be content to just sleep next to each other, like they had last weekend. Though she'd be more than willing to do so – tonight and every other night – she'd made the decision earlier to give herself to him, show him her love while whispering it in his ear.

With one final inhale, in which she caught the intoxicatingly masculine scent of his cologne, she slipped her arms from around his back and slid them up his chest to his neck, loosening his tie. Once pulled free, she began working on the buttons.

"Annie, are you sure?"

She paused only a moment to raise her hands to his face. "Let me love you, Auggie."

He nodded, and Annie nearly giggled as she saw his Adam's apple bob when he swallowed. She'd gotten the majority of the buttons undone, and when his tight, muscled chest was open to her, she leant forward and pressed her lips against his skin.

A shudder and a groan answered her impulsive gesture, and she felt her world tilt suddenly. Auggie's arms left her back, one sliding under her knees and the other across her shoulders. The hot pink dress slid off her legs to the floor, and Annie quickly wrapped her hands around Auggie's neck for balance as he made the short trip to the bed.


	14. Chapter 14

They'd made love for a couple of hours. The first time was frenzied as Annie and Auggie learned each other's bodies, wants, desires, and needs. Exhaustion soon took them by midnight, as they fell asleep tangled in each other's arms.

As such, Auggie neglected to set his alarm, and they found themselves jerking awake amid a groan of protests by the ringing of the phone. It took several seconds for Auggie to pull himself out of the depths of the sheets and Annie's body as she struggled to do the same.

"Yes, what?" Auggie growled into the phone.

"Auggie, you okay? It's Carl."

"Carl, why in the hell are you calling me so early?"

"Early? Aug, it's 9, man. You usually have the place open by now, and when I got here –"

"Ahh, shit," Auggie swore, reaching over to the table to grab his glasses. Once they were in place, he saw the time. "I'll be there in 15 minutes."

He slammed the phone down and ran to the bathroom.

Annie, herself still half-asleep, only heard half of what Auggie said on the phone, but once he pulled completely away from her and jumped out of the bed, she woke fully. "Where are you going?"

"I'm late. Carl was about to put out an APB for me."

"Just for being late?"

"I've never been late, and since it's my shop, I should be the one opening up, not Carl."

Annie opened her mouth to tell him it was okay, but soon shut it again. Beside last night's incident with Danielle, she had never seen Auggie so terse before. The bathroom door shut behind him, so she got up out of the bed and stretched. She spied Auggie's dress shirt from the night before lying near the bed and pulled it on.

Going over to the bathroom door, she heard the shower come on. She knocked and said, "Want me to make coffee?"

"No time."

"Oh, okay, then. Do you want me to go?"

He didn't answer, and Annie felt at a bit of a loss. Should she wait for him to finish and give him a good-bye kiss? Would he even want one? He refused coffee, so other than something of a good-bye, she wasn't sure what else to do. Looking around, she saw both of their clothing scattered around. She picked up her dress, and slipping Auggie's silk shirt off, put it back on. She continued with her underwear and shoes and retrieved her purse from the couch.

She knocked on the bathroom door again, "Auggie, I know you've got to go to work, so I'll call you later, okay? I'll pick up dinner and bring it by."

There was no answer, only the sound of water running in the shower. With a sigh, she let herself out of the apartment. She made it down the steps to the outer door and outside, and was rounding the corner in front of the shop to get to her car when she ran into Carl on the sidewalk.

"Annie?"

"Yes, hi, Carl. How are you this morning?" she said, trying to act as nonchalant as she didn't feel.

"Uhh, fine," he said, taking in her obvious evening wear, disheveled hair and the direction from where she was walking.

Annie knew she couldn't pretend that everything was fine, that she was just taking a stroll in the early morning outside her boyfriend's apartment, so she bit the bullet. "Auggie's in the shower. He'll be down in a minute."

The man's eyes grew wider, and for a moment, Annie thought she'd have to administer CPR if he didn't start breathing correctly.

* * *

><p>Auggie showered and shaved as fast as he could, towel drying his hair and hoping it would behave. He opened the door to let Annie use the bathroom, as she probably had to, but she wasn't anywhere. He stepped out into the apartment, pulling a t-shirt over his head, but she was gone. Her dress and shoes weren't on the floor, and her purse was no longer on the couch.<p>

She'd gone. He ran over to the window and saw her car still parked across the street. Where did she go? He looked around the street and saw her directly below him, talking to Carl. He raced out of his apartment. She was just saying good-bye to Carl and turning to her car.

"Annie!"

She turned to him, and smiled, but he saw that it didn't quite meet her eyes.

"Why'd you leave?"

"I said good-bye through the bathroom door. You seemed in such a hurry, I didn't want to bother you."

The ten minutes between waking in her arms to now, something seemed to have happened, and Auggie wanted nothing more than to pull her to him and kiss away the worry he saw on her face when he realized Carl hadn't gone into the shop and just stood there, staring at them with his mouth hanging open.

He took Annie by the arm and walked around to the side of the building. Once they were out of the eyesight of his employee's eavesdropping, he placed his hands on Annie's face and lifted her head until she looked him in the eyes. "I didn't hear you at all through the shower, and I'm sorry."

Annie nodded, but he could still see a bit of confusion in her eyes, so he did the only thing he could and kissed her. He didn't relent until he felt her relax under his hands, and then he pulled back.

"I'm sorry, too," Annie said, "for thinking – well, I don't know. You gotta understand, Auggie –" She half-laughed, taking in their surroundings, the time of day, and the fact that she was wearing an evening dress at 9 in the morning. "You have to understand," she said, lowering her voice. "I've never told a man what I told ou last night, and I'm not sure what to do now."

Auggie's heart broke a little at her words. "You've never told a man you love him?"

"Well, it's not that I've never told anyone that before. I just hadn't, well, felt so much as I do with you." Annie could feel her cheeks warm as she spoke. "I'm on a pretty steep learning curve here, you know. This is all so new and wonderful. I'm just not used to it."

"Neither am I," Auggie confessed, running his fingers along her hairline. "It's the same with me. You are the only woman I have ever loved, and when I woke up this morning, in your arms, I didn't want to move because I seriously thought I was dreaming. Then Carl had to call and ruin everything."

Annie laughed, feeling all remnants of her confusion leaving. She was about to respond when they're interrupted by Carl.

They both turned to him, and Auggie smiled as the man had the good sense not to gape, and only quietly said, "I'll man the store today, if there are some things you need to take care of, Auggie."

He turned and left, and Annie smiled. "He's a sweet kid."

Auggie nodded, "He means well. And I'd love to spend the day with you, but I really don't feel comfortable leaving him in charge. We've got a shipment due in today, and –"

"It's okay," Annie interrupted. She leaned forward and kissed him. "I've got some things to do, anyway. I'll be back tonight, bring supper?"

"Looking forward to it already."

One more kiss, and Annie walked back to her car.

Auggie went in the store, only to be stopped by Carl, who automatically started apologizing. "Auggie, I'm sorry for interrupting you this morning. Now that I know what car Annie drives, I'll check to see if it's here before doing it again."

"It's okay, Carl. It's my fault, anyway, I forgot to set my alarm."

With that, they settled into their daily tasks, which to Auggie seemed a little less interesting than normal. Two hours into the workday, he was contemplating telling Carl he was heading out for the day when his phone dinged. Annie had sent him a text.

_Miss you already._

And with that, Auggie found his day moving by faster as he anticipated the next text. Some were flirty. Some were funny. Some were so full of double entendres – did she really know what she was saying – that Auggie had to excuse himself to the bathroom for a few minutes.

The last one, though, took him by surprise. It was only about an hour before closing time, and his mouth was already watering at the prospect of dinner when his phone dinged.

_Do you have a passport?_


	15. Chapter 15

"Auggie, what's the matter?"

"Hmm?" he asked, looking up from the fish sandwich she'd brought from the bar for their supper. Two freshly made sandwiches and a six-pack of beer were reminders of their first unofficial date, and Auggie had promptly kissed her before accepting the packages at his door when she arrived.

"You've been more quiet than usual," Annie said, placing her own sandwich back down on the plate. "Bad day at work?"

He shrugged, "Busy, as usual, nothing out of the ordinary. Your texts made the time go by faster, though."

Remembering some of them, including the ones attached with pictures where she puckered for the camera, giving him a virtual kiss, Annie smiled. "I thought they might. You never answered the last one, though."

Auggie sighed. He knew she'd bring it up again, but he'd yet to find a way to tell her that he didn't have a passport, and before he met her, had no plans to leave the city, nor the state, let alone the country. "No, I don't have a passport."

"Oh," Annie said, her previous good mood a bit more subdued now. "I guess you wouldn't, huh? You just need them for leaving the country, and –"

"Why did you ask?"

"Remember Iceland?"

Auggie nodded, "It's where you planned on going when we first met, the trip you postponed because of all the work you'd gotten."

"Yeah, well, my travel agent called today, and she reminded me that I'd have to take the trip soon or lose what I paid in deposits for the plane and hotel."

His sandwich forgotten, Auggie pushed his plate away from him. He didn't want to ask the question, and didn't really want to know the answer, but he refused to let the little boy inside him who wanted to grasp onto her and never let go win. "When do you leave?"

"Tuesday. I'll be gone for a week," Annie said quietly. She knew he was hiding his disappointment, and it broke Annie's heart a little. "I don't have to go. Maybe my travel agent can transfer what I'd paid onto something else, or –"

"Go, Annie."

"But –"

"No," Auggie said, choking on the words as he forced them out of his throat. "Go, take your trip, enjoy yourself. Take lots of pictures for me."

"Auggie –"

"I'll apply for a passport tomorrow."

A bright spot of hope filtered through the gloom that had fallen between them. "Really?"

Auggie returned her smile. "Really. Go on your trip, but know it'll be the last one you'll go on alone."

Annie reached over the table to stroke his cheek and place a soft kiss on his lips. "Have I told you how much I loved you?"

Auggie grinned, "Yeah, this afternoon. I'm pretty sure some of what you sent could be classified as illegal, you know."

* * *

><p>Two days. It'd been two days since Annie landed in the capital of Iceland, and for the first time in her life, the thrill she usually experienced in a new place was gone. And it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out why. In the short amount of time that she'd known August Anderson, he seemed to have infiltrated her life so fully, she couldn't imagine living without him.<p>

The thought both thrilled and scared her. She'd never felt this much for anyone, and she wondered at the meaning of it all. Did she embrace it or not? If she did listen to the scared little girl in her who didn't want to risk her heart broken, she'd have to break up with him now before things got too serious.

The thought came and went in the same amount of time in her mind, as just the thought of life without Auggie caused more pain than she was experiencing now, just being away from him for a week. A lifetime without him seemed improbable, impossible, downright ludicrous.

Suddenly, the five days left in her trip seemed like five months, and Annie seriously contemplated chucking her entire trip and going home. But no, she thought. She was here. Auggie was only a phone call away if she needed him, and she decided to take his advice and take as many pictures as her digital camera would hold.

When she returned, she'd share them with him and relive her trip through his eyes.

* * *

><p>Auggie had, indeed, went online the next morning after their dinner date and applied for his passport. He made sure to have it expedited, and with his fingers crossed, sent in all the necessary paperwork. The least amount of time it would take was a few weeks. At the most, a couple of months.<p>

He'd wanted to, also, choose a destination and make plans for him and Annie to go away together. But he decided to play it safe and wait until he had the thin book in his hands. Besides, he wanted to take her somewhere she'd never been before, and since she said she went to what, 50 countries, it'd be a guessing game to pick one at this point.

And he'd want to leave the choosing up to her. He was more than happy staying in his little corner of the world for the rest of his life. But if he wanted to have Annie in his life, and he did in the worst way, he'd have to learn to break out of his carefully constructed shell. As long as she was there to help him, to guide him, to just do what she had been doing over the past month, he knew they'd make it.

For the week she was gone, he did his best to concentrate on work to make the time go faster. And for a while, it did, until, of course, she called the first night. They kept their calls short to cut down on the charges, but she more than made up for it with the e-mails, attaching pictures every time of where she was, where she'd been.

He thanked her every time for them, and signed off with his reminder to enjoy her time alone, as he planned on never leaving her side once she returned. As soon as he hit send, the weight of what he was promising her settled fully on him. He was promising her forever, and she was accepting.

Never in his life had he felt this way. And never in his life had he felt so happy. Annie made him happier than he'd ever been, and he'd be damned if he let her go.


	16. Chapter 16 redux

**A/N**

**Okay, before y'all jump down my throat going, what the hell? Let me explain. I SHOULD have just put this story on hiatus instead of stopping it abruptly. But I didn't, and I apologize profusely.**

**I've filled out the end and plan to write more. So many plot points were left hanging, and as a responsible writer, I shouldn't have done that.**

**So, please, accept my apology, and enjoy. Thanks for your understanding.**

**The changes start at Auggie's apartment after he's given her the necklace.**

* * *

><p>After dropping off her luggage at her house, Annie jumped back into her car. The piled up mail and grocery shopping would have to wait 'til later, as would the sleep she desperately needed that her jet lag was begging of her. It'd been a whole week since she saw Auggie, and after texting him that she'd arrived, he said he'd meet her at Hank's Tavern after work.<p>

When she walked through the door, she was slightly upset that Auggie wasn't there yet. She walked up to the bar and propped herself on one of the stools. She waved over to Hank, who came in from the kitchen.

"I know that look," he said, taking in the bags under her eyes, rumpled clothes and tired countenance. "Where are you back from this time?"

Annie smiled as he picked up a bottle of Jack Daniels and a shot glass and set them in front of her. He always knew what she was in the mood for after one of her trips. "Reykjavik," she said, picking up the amber liquid and downing it in one go.

"Huh?"

"Iceland." She waves for him to fill the glass up again.

Hank's eyes narrowed. He knew something other than jet lag was on her mind. "Talk to me, NFL girl."

After the second ounce of whiskey slid down her throat, Annie sighed, "It's Auggie."

"The guy you were in here with before?"

"Yep," Annie said, grabbing the bottle and helping herself to a third shot.

"Is he bothering you? Need me to have a word with him?"

"God, no!" Annie nearly shouted.

Hank sat the bottle back under the bar and out of her reach. "Okay, then, why do you sound – well, un-Annie-like?"

"Because!" Annie moaned, the jet lag, frustration and now three shots of JD flowing through her system. "I couldn't enjoy one moment while I was gone."

"Bad weather?" Hank asked. The look she shot him said it all. She had it bad, in love, and hating every second of it. "Love's a bitch, isn't it?"

"I'll drink to that!" Annie said, raising her empty shot glass to him, waiting for another refill.

"Don't you think you should slow down until he gets here?" he asked. "You are meeting him here, right?"

Annie sat the glass back on the bar with a frown. "He should be here already. Let me text him."

She pulled out her cell and set off a quick text.

"_get ur hot ass over here"_

Not a minute later, she had a reply.

"_Annie, you okay?"_

"_where r u?"_

"_outside on sidewalk, walking to pub"_

Annie's head whipped around to the front door. She couldn't see him through the glass. She slid off the stool and walked outside. He was a half a block down, his cell still in his hands. Torn between jumping into his arms and punching him in the chest, she didn't move.

Auggie, though, did, and covered the space between them in a few seconds, enveloping her in his arms. "God, I missed you."

Annie's arms went automatically around his back, her head in the crook of his shoulder. "You better. I couldn't enjoy myself at all!" Her words were punctuated by two punches on his back by her clenched fists.

She pulled back from him, placing her hands on his shoulders as his slid to her waist. "Don't you understand? I've been wanting to go to Iceland for years! And I hated it! And it's all your fault!"

Her hands slapped at his shoulders as she spoke, and Auggie felt four types of confusion go through him. Her e-mails and texts throughout the week were full of happiness and pictures and words of love. Why was she hitting him?

A chuckle sounded behind her, and he looked up to see Hank standing there, Annie's bag and cellphone in his grasp. "I think what our girl is trying to say is that she missed you."

The man's warm smile cleared Auggie's confusion a bit, and he takes the bag and cell from his grasp. All the fight had gone out of Annie, and her head now rested against his chest. "Come on, Annie, let's go home."

He walked her the few blocks back to his building, her head on his shoulder, and their arms around each other. She seemed to lean even further against him, that by the time they'd made it up the steps to his apartment, he nearly had her entire weight against him. He swept her up in his arms and headed for the bed.

Once he laid her on the comforter and pulled away, her eyes opened again, and she awoke. "Where are you going?"

"I'll be right back."

The exhaustion kept threatening to pull Annie under, but she sat up enough to watch him move through the apartment. He went to the kitchen, and her eyes went over to the dining table. It was set completely with place settings for two, candles, and a bouquet of flowers on her plate.

The delicious aroma of pasta and sauce and cheese wafted through the air as Auggie pulled a lasagna out of the oven.

"You cooked?" she asked, her stomach rumbling. She hadn't eaten since that morning, the airplane food barely adequate to fill her.

"Uhh, yeah, I wanted to surprise you, welcome you home." Auggie set the platter on the table. "I didn't think of you being jet lagged or tired. Maybe I should have done this tomorrow."

"No, it's okay," Annie said, sliding back off the bed. When she stood, her equilibrium was still a bit off, so she slid off her heels and walked over to the table. She sat in her chair and picked up the bouquet.

"Those are for you."

A dozen red roses, interspersed with pink ones. Each one perfectly formed. Annie brought them to her nose and inhaled the sweet scent. It was then that she noticed the box in amongst the blooms.

She pulled it out and saw that it was a long jewelers box. "Oh, Auggie, you didn't have to get me anything."

Pulling his chair around to her side, he took the box from her hands and opened it.

Not knowing what to expect – he'd never given her a present before – Annie looked at the inside of the box and gasped, then giggled. Laying in the black velvet was a beautifully wrought thin gold chain with a pendant. The letter "A," also in gold, but designed in a Superman style.

"Okay, I wasn't expecting laughter, but –"

Annie leaned forward and wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him soundly. "I love you, Auggie."

Auggie looped his arms around her shoulders, as well. "I know."

_**EDITS START HERE**_

"And I missed you," she said, leaning her forehead against his as her fingers tangled in the waves at his neck.

Damn, Auggie thought, just the lightest touch from her was enough to ignite his desire and make his heart race. "I gathered that much," he said with a grin.

Annie smirked and said teasingly, "Wanna go steady?"

Auggie laughed, "Yes."

Annie didn't know whether it was the jetlag or the flowers or the necklace that caused her to ask the next question, but it seemed so right, so inevitable, that she couldn't help herself. "Can I move in with you?"

"Yes," Auggie replied without a thought. He'd turned his life upside down for her already in the short time they'd known each other, he couldn't remember what life was like without her – or that he'd want to live it, anyway.

Annie pulled back a little at his answer. They were still embracing, but she needed to see his eyes to gauge his sincerity, or if he was just teasing her. "Really?"

Auggie nodded. There was really nothing more to say. They loved each other, couldn't bear to be apart, and he was sure that if her next question asked him to stand on his head, he'd do it.

"You don't think we're moving too fast?" Annie asked, her heart racing as the implications of their conversation began to form in her mind.

Auggie shook his head no.

Smiling, Annie once again rested her forehead against his. All during the past week, as she tried to enjoy herself alone in Iceland and failing, all she could think of was how much she wished Auggie were there with her. Her life before Auggie was nothing but a preamble to what lay before her – no, them – now, and she never wanted to let him go. "Auggie?" she whispered.

"Yes?"

"Will you do something for me?"

"Anything. Name it."

Annie wasn't quite sure what made this idea pop into her head, but she was amazed at how true and right it felt. Leaning to the side, she whispered into his ear.

Auggie shivered at the request, his arms clenching around her shoulders. When she pulled back, her cheek brushed up against his in the process. Before she could pull any further away, he released her shoulders to cup her cheeks. He pressed his lips against hers in a possessive kiss. "Wait here."

On slightly shaking legs, Auggie went to his dresser and withdrew from a drawer a small box that had been hid in the back under some clothes. He returned to her, not bothering to sit in the chair, but dropping down on one knee beside her.

"Anne Catherine Walker, my Princess Annie, would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

Annie wasn't sure if she was dreaming, as tired as she was from the trip and still buzzing a little from the shots she'd consumed at Hank's. She couldn't believe her ears. She'd whispered in his ear, asking him to ask her to marry him only as an extension of the pillow talk they were engaging in.

She'd pictured them promising themselves to one another and then making love and going to look for rings in the near future, after they'd talked about it some more. But now he was before her, a shining band of gold and diamonds laid in velvet in his hands, offering to share his life with her.

She'd wanted to ask why he already had a ring, where it came from, and about a dozen other things, but at that moment, there was only one thing she needed to say, only one thing he needed to hear.

"Yes, Auggie, I will."

* * *

><p><strong>AN I hadn't changed much in terms of plot, only fleshed it out much more.**

**So what do you say? Are you still interested in this? Should I continue? Whaddya say?**


	17. Chapter 17

Wakefulness came easy for Annie the next morning. Then again, 12 hours of sleep would be restful for anyone, she thought as she blinked against the bright sunshine falling across Auggie's bed.

Bright sunshine meant mid-morning, at least. Once her eyes were fully open, she noted with a frown that she was alone. Auggie must have gone to work, she thought. It was only Wednesday, and she couldn't expect him to give up his work to snuggle in bed with her. She did miss him, though.

After he'd slid the ring on her finger last night, she'd wanted nothing more than to climb into his lap and kiss him senseless, but he'd made her eat the dinner he made. She was grateful for it, as airplane food was never her cup of tea, and the shots she'd tossed back at Hank's prior made her a bit unsteady on her feet.

After the dinner, which he cleaned up after – including washing dishes – Annie had had enough and drew him into bed with her before jet lag and exhaustion – physical and mental – pulled her under for good.

They'd made out for a long time before Auggie had pulled away and retrieved a t-shirt for her to sleep in and pants for him. Annie blushed now at how she'd pouted that they weren't going to celebrate their engagement in a more carnal manner, but she'd known that sleep was coming on fast, and they had the rest of their lives to prove their love to one another.

The rest of her life, Annie thought now, stretching out and rolling over to Auggie's side of the bed. His scent still clung to the pillows – a heady mix of Old Spice and soap. She placed her left hand on the pillow, admiring the sparkling diamond on her ring finger.

When, she thought. When did he purchase it? It fit perfectly on her finger, so he must have researched her ring size, and more than likely had it made. When did he know he wanted to marry her? They'd known each other only a month. Almost exactly a month, she thought. And for the past week of that month, they'd been apart.

A niggle of fear and doubt wormed into her brain. A sinister thought that maybe this wasn't love, but lust, and they were moving way too fast. I mean, she thought, we've only had a few real dates, and only had sex once – well, more than once, but only one night together like that.

Annie groaned as the thoughts piled on top of one another, and her head started to pound. She took a deep breath to still her anxiety and extricated herself from the bed. Bathroom, coffee, then find Auggie, she decided. She needed to know that last night was real, and laying around thinking about possibilities did no good.

* * *

><p>Auggie looked at his watched for about the 12th time that morning. It was nearly 11am, and he still hadn't heard from Annie. He had to drag himself away from her that morning, though he yearned to stay wrapped in her arms when the alarm went off. But he knew she needed to sleep, and he decided to head down to his shop before Carl called and woke her.<p>

It'd only been a few hours, but he missed her already, which made him laugh at himself. He'd gone without her for a whole week and survived, surely he could last one morning.

15 minutes later, as Carl finished with a customer, he called across the store to him. "Hey, Carl, I'm gonna head up to the apartment. Can you watch the place for a few minutes?"

"No need, Aug. Annie's coming in."

"Huh?"

Carl pointed to the front door, where Annie was holding it open for the leaving customer. Once the threshold was clear, Annie walked in.

She glanced around the interior and waved to Carl who stood behind the register. The young man returned her wave and pointed across the store. Annie had maybe half a second to register Auggie's approach, and then she was in his embrace.

"Hey, sweetheart, you sleep okay?" Auggie asked as he held her against him, unheeding of Carl's smile and surreptitious exit to the break room.

Annie's worries about wearing the same clothes two days in a row, or not having a toothbrush to properly brush her teeth, or the fact that she hadn't eaten since last night slid away as she let herself be held by Auggie. His simple tee was soft, and his muscular arms, chest and shoulders were strong. Perfect, she thought. There's no way this is only lust. I'm truly in love with this man.

"Annie?" Auggie asked, pulling back a little to peer down into her face. "Are you okay?"

The smile she gave him, coupled with the devotion in her eyes nearly brought him to his knees. "I am now."

Had they not been in full view of the pedestrian traffic and essentially blocking the store's entrance, Auggie would have wrapped her around his body, bent her over his arm and give her the good morning kiss he so wanted to give her when he woke that morning.

Instead, he settled for a short, but passionate, kiss on her smiling lips before stepping back. He took her hand and led her back to his desk at the back of the store. As he did, he couldn't help but notice she still wore the ring he gave her.

"I take it this means you haven't changed your mind?" he asked, running his thumb over the gold and diamond.

Annie shook her head as she settled into a chair beside him. "I had to come down her to make sure it wasn't a dream. I mean, how – when did you buy it, Auggie? We only met a month ago, remember?"

Auggie chuckled. "I got it a few days ago, Annie. I couldn't stop thinking about you, and after applying for my passport, I started thinking about where I wanted to take you. And then –" he took a deep breath and dropped his eyes to her left hand that he still held. His fingers ran down the back of her hand and traced the knuckles. "I'd made such a list, that I realized it would take all of our lives to visit all of the places. Right then, right there, I decided that, if you'd have me, I wanted to be in your life forever. So I snuck into your place – you gave me a key to check your mail, remember – and borrowed one of your rings. Before I lost my nerve, I went down to the jewelers and got this."

Auggie paused in his explanation to look up at her face. Her eyes were brimming with tears, and he reached up to capture one as it dropped onto her cheek. "I fully expected that we would date and be together for months before the time was right to propose, but if you remember, you asked me. I was just the one with the ring."

Laughter bubbled up in Annie, escaping through her lips as a few more tears fell. "And I was just teasing you, you know. I wasn't sure you felt the same way, or – I don't know, Auggie. All I know, right here, right now, that I never want to be apart from you."

"I love you, Annie. I know it hasn't been long that we've known each other, but why waste time?" he asked. "Tell you what, let's just take it one step at a time, okay?"

Annie nodded, though she thought, if he kept looking at her like that and offered to whisk her away to Vegas for a drive-thru wedding, she'd say yes in a heartbeat.

"Okay, then. The first offer was for us to go steady, but unless you've got another guy stashed away somewhere, I'd say we were doing that already, right?"

"No other guy for me. How about you?"

"I'm not seeing any other guys, either, so we're even," Auggie said with a smile. "Just kidding. Of course, I'm not seeing anyone else. So the next offer was for you to move in, so why don't we just do that?"

A wide smile broke Annie's face. "Really? You'd want me to move into your apartment? Are you sure?"

"I proposed to you last night, Annie. Moving you in isn't going to be a problem."

"Hmm," Annie said, leaning back in her chair. "And what if I want to bring all of my stuff?"

Auggie could hear the teasing note in her voice, "Like what?"

"Well, if you've been in my bedroom, I'm sure you would have seen –"

Auggie rolled his eyes, but acquiesced. "Yes, you can bring your life-size standup of Christopher Reeve as Superman. Anything else?"

Annie laughed, "Well, that's just the one I have in my bedroom. You haven't seen what I've got in storage."

* * *

><p><strong>AN I'd written out a few different ways to extend this, but once I started with the fluffy sweetness, I got carried away. These two are so much fun to write for. But what do you think? Is a month enough time to dedicate their lives to each other? **

**Please review.**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N Hmm, Readers complained when I abruptly ended it, cheered when I said I'd continue, and when I did continue…nothing. Huh? What? Anyway, on with the show:**

* * *

><p>Annie knocked on the door of Danielle's house, wishing impatiently that her sister would answer. She knew she should have called first, but she couldn't wait to give her the good news.<p>

Finally the door opened. "Danielle!"

The elder sister had a few seconds to steel herself before being launched into a full body hug by Annie. "Oof. Okay, what's the matter?"

"Why should anything be the matter?" Annie asked, bounding into the house.

"Because," Danielle said slowly, "The only other time you've shown up like this without calling or giving any other kind of heads up, you'd just broken up with Ben, remember?"

Annie froze just a second in her joy, but soon recovered. "Yes, of course I remember, and you are kind of correct, in a small way. It has to do with a guy."

Danielle sighed heavily before shutting the door. "Okay. You sit down, I'll get the ice cream."

Annie laughed, grabbing her sister's arm before she could head into the kitchen. "It's not an ice cream moment, Danielle. I promise."

"Are you sure? You're acting really weird," she said, sitting down on the couch next to Annie.

Annie waited until Danielle was settled before launching into her news. She hoped her sister wouldn't freak out too much, but she had to know. "It's Auggie. And me. We're –" Annie looked down at her left hand where the ring still sparkled up at her. "Well, we're engaged."

"What?" Danielle screeched.

Annie jumped a few inches off the couch at the loud, high-pitched noise. Then she was being pulled forward by her hand as Danielle grabbed it to inspect the ring.

"When did this happen?"

"Yesterday."

"But – you just got back from Iceland."

"I know," Annie said. "Auggie met me, and we – oh, I don't know how to tell you this, Dani. I know we've only been together for about a month, and you probably think we're moving too fast, but –"

The rest of her sentence was cut short as Danielle launched herself across the couch and wrapped her arms around Annie. "Oh, no, you're not moving too fast," Danielle said. "I saw you two when you left after my dinner party. And yes, before you say anything, I was watching out the window, and I could tell you two were meant for each other."

Annie's eyes closed at the memory. "That's the first time he told me he loved me."

"See?" Danielle said, settling back. "It's inevitable. Who cares if you dated for years or days? So when's the wedding?"

"Whoa, hold on there," Annie said, raising a hand. "We haven't even talked about that part yet. For now, I'm just going to move in, and we'll take it from there."

"Okay."

"Which is part of the reason why I'm here. Auggie's apartment can fit some of my stuff, but if you wouldn't mind taking some of my furniture?"

"Sure, no problem. So when's the big move?" Danielle asked.

"Probably this weekend. I've got a couple of months left on my lease, so we don't have to move everything out right away, thank goodness."

Danielle nodded, then got up and went into the kitchen. Annie wondered what she was doing, but when she came back with a glass of champagne and two glass flutes, she giggled. "Don't tell me, you want to start celebrating now?"

"No time like the present," Danielle said, popping the cork and pouring the bubbly liquid into the two glasses. "Since there's no wedding to plan for, how about letting me do an engagement dinner for you two?"

"That sounds okay," Annie said with a shrug.

"I still have to make up for last time, you know."

"I know, and we've both forgiven you for that."

"Okay, then," Danielle said, setting her glass down and picking up a pad and pencil. "First off, when should we have the dinner?"

**A/N I'm in the middle of a few projects, so updates on this story will be shorter than normal. Enjoy.**


	19. Chapter 19

Auggie took his stairs two at a time as he ran from his store up to his – their – apartment. Annie had moved in two weeks prior, and he quickly found the perks of having his loving girlfriend – fiancee – just a few feet from him at any given time.

And now, since the cool, wet weather resulted in only one customer all day, he instructed Carl to take over while he took a long lunch break. He'd ignored his employee's smirk, simply because if Carl weren't there, Auggie would have been chained to his store for eight hours a day, and unable to see Annie as much as he'd liked.

He opened the door, hoping to catch Annie in the middle of making lunch – hopefully enough for two – but there were no smells emanating from the kitchen area, nor did the kitchen look like it was used beyond the coffee they'd made and drunk that morning.

He took a couple of steps in. "Annie?"

Looking around the newly decorated and arranged apartment, he saw Annie at her desk, bent over the keyboard, typing away furiously. She wore a tank top and some kind of pink knit pants that he loved solely because they hung low on her hips, giving him a peekaboo of her toned abdomen. Her long, blonde hair was pulled up in a messy bun on top of her head, with a few tendrils hanging down her neck.

Just the fact that she looked so comfortable in his place gave Auggie pause to just stand there and stare at her. But after a few seconds, he crossed the apartment to come up behind her.

Her desk, one of the few pieces of furniture she insisted she bring from her rented house, looked much the same way as it did when he first met her – strewn with papers, books, notepads, pencils, and her oversized cup with a teabag hanging over the side.

"Hey, sweetheart," Auggie murmured, bending down to nuzzle against her neck where a lock of hair had fallen down from the bun. He felt her shiver from his caress and pressed his lips against her porcelain skin.

"Mm," Annie murmured, pulled instantly away from her work at Auggie's touch. She halfway turned in her chair and caught Auggie's lips in a soft kiss before turning back to her computer. "Come up for lunch?"

"Mm-hmm," Auggie said, sliding his mouth along her jaw to the spot just beneath her left ear that he knew drove her wild. "Lunch, or something else." He lay both hands on her shoulders, running his thumbs under the straps of her tank top, kneading the slightly tense muscles.

"Auggie," Annie protested softly.

"Yes?" he whispered, darting his tongue out to taste her.

"I have to work."

"So do I – I'm taking a lunch break, thought you'd want to, as well," he murmured, one hand moving up her hair to pull it loose.

"Later," Annie said, removing his hand from her hair with one of her own.

Auggie caught the dismissive tone in her voice, and he pulled away from her neck and straightened up. "Is something wrong?"

Annie shrugged, "No, of course not. Just need to get this done. Deadline's end of day."

"But surely you can –"

"No, Auggie, I can't. I'm sorry if I'm ruining your great plans to come up here for a quickie, but I really can't."

If nothing, the tone in her voice cooled any ardor Auggie was feeling, and he dropped his hand from where it was stroking her shoulder. "Okay, fine. I mean, I totally understand, you're working, and I guess I should, too."

Stalking over to the kitchen, Auggie began pulling out items for a quick sandwich that he figured he could take down to the shop and eat. He knew he was being somewhat petty and juvenile, shutting the refrigerator door harder than he needed to and banging cupboard doors, but he was annoyed. Maybe this great idea of moving Annie in with him a month after they'd met wasn't the great idea it seemed two weeks ago.

"Auggie."

He didn't move, only continued to cut bread and spread mayonnaise, and Annie hung her head to her chest. "Auggie, don't be like this."

"Like what, Annie? I'll be out of your hair in a few minutes, okay?"

"You're angry at me." He didn't respond, and his silence only served to aggravate Annie even more, given how much work she needed to get done and sent to her client by the end of the day. "I'll have this project done by the end of the day, and then we'll have all night together."

He still didn't respond, only continued to make his sandwich, and Annie gritted her teeth. It'd been a great couple of weeks, and aside from the laying down of a few ground rules at the beginning – apparently, Auggie didn't like wet towels on the bathroom floor – she felt at home here with him. But now, it seemed, the honeymoon bubble had burst.

Extricating herself from behind her desk, she walked over to where he stood, his back to her. She reached around him and removed the knife from his hand and set it on the counter. Then, with a firm grasp on his arm, she turned him around until he faced her.

The look on his face – hurt, upset – tugged at her heart, and she placed both hands on his cheeks and lifted up on tiptoe to kiss him full on the mouth.

"You know I love you, right?" she asked, looking him straight in the eye. He nodded, and she continued, "Then why are you acting this way?"

Auggie reached up and pulled her hands off his face and entwining her fingers with his. "I just assumed we'd have more time together, but it seems our times never quite match up. You're always working, and –"

"Yes, we both work," Annie conceded. "But my work is just as important as yours. How would you like it if I came down to your store when it's full of customers and straddled you?"

Auggie's eyes rose at the imagery, and his mouth tilted up at the edges. "Would you?"

"Auggie –"

"Okay, your point is taken," he said and took a deep breath. "You say you'll be done by the end of the day?"

Annie nodded, and cocking an eyebrow, brought their clasped hands up to her lips. His eyes, as expressive as they've always been, darkened as she ran her lips along his index finger, her tongue darting out.

Auggie groaned at the gesture. "You sure you can't take a break for a few minutes or perhaps an hour?"

Annie shook her head, the effort brushing her lips along his knuckles.

"Then you'd better let me go and have my sandwich before something happens that'll definitely make you miss your deadline," Auggie teased.

"As you wish," Annie whispered against their hands before releasing his hands and walking slowly back to her desk.

Auggie groaned as he tore his eyes away from her swaying backside. "Nice try, Buttercup, but I still haven't changed my mind about role-playing."

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><p><strong>AN Well, you wouldn't expect everything to be all roses and champagne, would you? Maybe these two should've had a few discussions prior to shacking up. :)**

**Please review, as always.**


	20. Chapter 20

Auggie trudged home after his eye appointment. His home, he thought with a smile, was truly now their home, his and Annie's. She'd moved completely out of her rented house and decided to just eat the extra month of rent. Danielle now had some of her furniture, and the rest went into storage.

Because Auggie owned the building his computer shop and home were in, they'd be able to save enough money for a wedding. Annie hinted the other night the possibility of a destination wedding, putting the two ideas together once Auggie's passport is approved. He agreed, but they both knew that was something for the future, and needn't be decided right then and there.

As Auggie walked passed the darkened windows and closed sign of Geeks-r-Us, he peered in. He'd closed the shop for the afternoon. September had come, and Carl had gone back to college for his senior year. Annie offered to watch the store for him, but he didn't want to interrupt her work or make her beholden to him. She'd wanted to argue, but soon saw his point. She knew nothing of the business, and a couple of hours closed didn't cause too much pain or grief with his customers. He'd had to do it in the past.

When he came through the front door of his place, Annie greeted him with a hug and a kiss. He reciprocated, but seemed a bit hesitant. Annie pulled back and saw a few lines on his face that only showed up when he was preoccupied, worried, or had something intense on his mind.

She didn't pry right at first, only got him a drink and sat him on the couch. After a few swallows of the Patron, she asked him what happened.

"My eye doctor, the one I'd been seeing for years now – he's the best. He said I'd be a good candidate for lasik surgery."

Annie sat up, her interest immediately upped to another level. "Really? I thought your eyesight was too bad for that."

"It is bad," Auggie said, "but he said its declining progression would get worse and worse until - I told you about this, remember?"

Annie remembered, waking up one morning to find him stuck in a nightmare where he found himself blind.

"Well, apparently, the lasik procedure has gotten more and more refined, and he now thinks I can do it."

Annie couldn't believe it, but by the same worried look on Auggie's face, it seemed he didn't share her enthusiasm. Without wanting to push him into something he didn't want, she asked steadily, "What do you think about it?"

"At first, I was happy, ecstatic. Even made an appointment right then and there for a prelim exam by a guy he recommended. Said he's the best in the business."

"But?" Annie prompted.

"That's just it," Auggie said, pouring and swallowing another shot of the strong drink. "But. Big but." He took a deep breath. He knew he could talk to Annie about this. She'd been the only one in his life that took his eye problems in stride and never judged him by his lack of sight. "What if it doesn't work?"

"Well, if it doesn't, you won't be any worse for the wear. You'll just still have to wear glasses, and you already do."

"That's not what I mean, Annie," he said. "What if something bad happens, and I lose my sight completely?"

Ahh, Annie thought, that's it. He's afraid of going completely blind. She looked at him, taking in his appearance, sitting on the couch, elbows on his knees, head hanging forward. He looked defeated already, and nothing had been done yet.

She pulled the empty glass from his fingers and set it on the table, then wrapped her arms around him. He was stoic at first, but slowly accepted her embrace, wrapping his arms around her as he tucked his head into her neck and shoulder. Annie held on tight, giving him the strength she knew he needed at a time like this.

Several minutes passed as the couple held tight to each other. There was nothing vaguely sexual in the air, as only love and devotion swirled around them.

"I don't want to go totally blind, Annie."

"I know."

"I don't want to saddle you with having to live with a cripple for the rest of your life."

Annie's hands, which had been stroking his back, froze at his words. She leaned back out of his embrace until she could see his face. "Is that how you see yourself?"

"Not now, no, but –"

"But if this lasik doesn't work, or something goes wrong, and heaven forbid, you lose your sight completely, you think I wouldn't want to be with you anymore?"

"I don't know. We've never really talked about this, you know."

"Then we'll talk now." Annie's nearly in tears, but unwilling to let Auggie see her disappointment in his summation of her and their relationship. "I don't give a flying fig whether or not you can see. You'll still be Auggie, my Auggie. The man who, when I teasingly requested that he ask me to marry him produced a ring. The man who – god, Auggie, I can't quite explain why I love you. All I know is that it happened. It's there. And believe me when I say that none of my feelings revolve around whether or not you can see."

The corners of Auggie's lips twitched during her rant. He loved her like this, where she burst forth in broken sentences, her arms waving as she searched for the right thing to say. For a woman who held five times the amount of words in her mental vocabulary given her penchant for foreign languages, the fact that she sometimes was at a loss for words made his love for her explode within his chest.

"I love you," Auggie said.

"And I love you, too," Annie said.

"I'll do it."

"For yourself, right?" Annie asked. "Not for me? Not for us?"

Auggie cradled her face in his hands and studied her, taking in every curve, shadow and color. His hands seemed too gruff and worn to be touching such smooth perfection, but he couldn't stop himself from brushing his thumbs along her cheekbones.

"I'll do it for me, but everything I do now affects us both, don't you agree?"

Feeling safe and loved within the confines of his touch, Annie nodded and said, "I do."


	21. Chapter 21

Annie sat in Dr. Stuart Heatherton's waiting room, too nervous to drink the coffee offered, and too worried for Auggie to spend the time reading a magazine or newspaper. So she sat, fingers twisting in her lap as she watched the door that Auggie had disappeared through half an hour ago.

She'd asked him if he wanted her to go in with him, but he just smiled and made a joke about being a big boy. She wished she had his sense of humor. After a handful of appointments with his regular optometrist and this new doctor, Dr. Heatherton, Auggie had decided to go for it and shut his shop down for a week. Annie, too, cleared her schedule so she'd be there for him.

Though they both were reassured about the number of successful surgeries done around the world, and a good number of those by Dr. Heatherton himself, Annie took it upon herself to do some research herself on "Laser-Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis."

After spending what he considered an unhealthy amount of time online doing research, Auggie made her close down her browser and stop worrying. She could turn away from the internet, but Annie refused to stop caring about him. The thought of the surgery not working, and Auggie eventually going completely blind didn't worry her. She loved the man he was, not his sight. But the amount of pain and discomfort he was subjecting himself to at this moment made her want to go through it herself.

"Excuse me, Miss Walker?"

"Yes," Annie said, standing up quickly to greet the assistant who came through the door.

"You're with Mr. Anderson, correct?"

"Yes."

"The surgery is over, if you'd like to follow me, I can take you back to him."

Annie walked with shaky legs after the woman through the door and down a carpeted hallway. She wasn't sure what to expect, and steeled herself to find Auggie unconscious with bandages swathed around his head.

Auggie tried to breathe normally, even though the familiar panic was rising in his chest – panic from his recurring nightmare of losing his sight. He repeated in his head what the doctor had said, that within 24 hours, he should be able to remove the eyepatch and be able to see. That, and digging his nails into his palms to get his mind off of his stinging eyeball calmed him a bit.

Then he heard the door open, and his head turned instinctively to the sound. He smiled at himself for expecting to be able to see who'd come in. After a couple of seconds, though, he didn't hear any sound or the person speak, and his smile faded. "Hello?"

Then he heard it, the unmistakable sound of Annie's voice. She breathed his name, "Auggie?"

He reached a hand out to her. "Hey, beautiful."

The smile, and then the extended hand, broke the resolve Annie had been holding onto for the past hour, and she crossed the space between them, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and burying her head in his neck. He was still half-lying in the reclining chair, and her hug nearly knocked them both onto the ground, but Auggie caught her slight weight with his arms and held her to him.

"I was so worried," Annie whispered into his skin.

Auggie chuckled, his hands smoothing over her back. "After all the research you did? I'm surprised you weren't in the room with Dr. Heatherton, giving him pointers."

Annie pulled back slightly and looked more fully on his face, running her fingers over his skin. "Don't joke, Auggie. Not now."

"I'll be fine," he reassured her, then leaning forward, unerringly caught her mouth with his. Pulling back, he said, "The doctor will be back in a few minutes to give us instructions, okay?"

"How did you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Kiss me? When you can't –"

"Guess I don't need my sight for the important things," he said, his hands sliding up her back to rest on her shoulders. "When we get back home, we should test out how well we can do other things."

"Well, I usually advise my patients to rest for 24 hours," Dr. Heatherton said, coming into the room to find his patient in the embrace of a beautiful blonde.

Annie automatically sprang to her feet, thoroughly embarrassed. She tried to extricate herself from Auggie's embrace, but he caught her hand and held onto it as Dr. Heatherton began to speak.

"I take it you're going to be with Mr. Anderson during his recovery time?"

"Yes," Annie said, nodding. "I'm his – well –"

"Annie's my fiancee," Auggie said. "She'll be taking care of me."

"You're a lucky man," Dr. Heatherton noted, then took a seat and detailed to Annie and Auggie what he did during the surgery. "Now, I understand your apprehension, Mr. Anderson, so I would recommend leaving the patch on for a full 24 hours before removing it and attempting to use your sight. I have no reason to believe the procedure didn't work, and you should have no abnormal side effects."

"Understood," Auggie said.

"Then I'll see you in a week. Don't hesitate to call the office if you experience any severe pain or discomfort, or just have any questions, okay?"

"Thank you, Dr. Heatherton," Annie said, extending her hand out.

When he left, Auggie said, "Well, I'm ready to go home and get pampered by own personal nurse."

"Should I ask the staff to borrow a pair of scrubs?" Annie asked.

Auggie slid his hand up to grip her elbow as they left the office. "I was hoping you had one of those sexy outfits with white thigh-highs and a stethoscope."

"Auggie!"

"What? I've gotta rely on my imagination now, at least for a day or two," he said, leaning down to brush his lips against her cheek.

Annie refused to bait him any further, at least when they were still in the office surrounded by nurses and other patients. Only when they were both seatbelted into her car, and she was ready to drive home did she reply to his proposition.

"I'd buy one of those outfits, but I thought you said you weren't into roleplaying."

"Now you're talking," Auggie said, leaning back in his car seat.

"But only if you promise to buy a black silk shirt and head scarf and –"

"Now you're pushing it."

* * *

><p><strong>AN Personally, I wear glasses and would love to do lasik, but I share Annie's apprehension, especially after reading all the information and probably misinformation available online. But Auggie should have no problem, especially with "Dr. Stu" at the helm. Mmm, Dr. Stu. Anyone else having any fantasies regarding Gabe Grey in scrubs? mmmmmmm.**

**Please review.**


	22. Chapter 22

"Are you sure you're comfortable? Can I get you anything else?"

Auggie shook his head no, and before Annie could walk away, he reached out, snagging her arm. He congratulated himself for finding her on the first shot, and with a smooth pull and tug and twist, soon had her sideways on his lap. "Ahh, that's much more comfortable," he said.

"Auggie, come on, you need to rest," Annie said, placing her hands on his shoulders to balance herself. Her movements dug her lower region into his, though, and he lay his head back with a moan. "Sorry, did I hurt you?"

She moved to get up, but he clamped his hands on her hips and pulled her even closer. "Quite the contrary," he said with a smile.

Annie wanted nothing more than to continue their flirting and teasing, and all the other hot and steamy movements he was conjuring in her mind, but she knew it was the painkillers talking. She leaned down and gave him one kiss and then stood up.

"I'll make us some lunch, and then you should take a nap," she said, leaving him on the couch as she headed to the kitchen.

Auggie immediately missed the warmth of her body against his, but knew she was right. The only reason he was feeling more-than-fine was the lovely effects of the pills Dr. Heatherton had given him. And other than a big of tingling in his eyeball, which he was instructed NOT TO TOUCH, he almost felt a bit drunk.

Which brought him to his current situation, which he hoped Annie didn't have to help with, either. He stood up gingerly and began to walk across the room to – what he hoped was – the bathroom.

Annie whirled around at the sound of his footsteps and almost ran across the room to take his arm and lead him to his destination. She took one step, then realized he was walking fine by himself. His steps small, sure, but he was making it to the bathroom door, and after holding her breath for the seconds it took him to get to the door, Annie let it out and turned back to the counter.

She knew he was more than capable of taking care of himself, even if she wasn't here. He just had that air of confidence. But all she could think of was that first night she'd slept over – when she'd drank too much wine to safely drive home. She'd woken him out of a nightmare where he found himself stumbling in the dark, completely blind and out of control.

Now that he was blind – albeit temporarily – he showed no hint of terror or sweats. Annie hoped it was just the effects of the medication, and his recovery would be smooth and without problems.

* * *

><p>After lunch, Auggie took Annie's advice to lay down for a while. His eye was really starting to itch, and the painkiller he just ingested was starting to make him feel a bit dizzy. He took Annie's proffered hand after he stood and slightly swayed on his feet.<p>

He kicked off his shoes as he reached the bed, and as he sat down, he was surprised to feel Annie's hands move to the buttons on his shirt, undoing them one by one. Though there was no sexual feel in her precise movements, just the scent of her so near was enough to set his body alight. He'd been so entranced in the past by her beauty, her smile, the sway of her blonde locks, that he didn't realize how intoxicating her perfume was.

He inhaled as she leaned closer to draw his shirt over his shoulders, his head instinctively tucking in between her head and shoulder. Her hair fell across his face, and the softness made him shudder. Once his arms were free of his shirt, they raised to her, his hands grasping her shoulders before she had a chance to move away.

"Annie," he whispered.

He could sense her hesitation, could feel her minutely begin to pull away, but he also felt something else. Her breath on his skin as he whispered her name. She'd exhaled with a sigh, and he desperately wanted to hear that sound again, to feel her warm breath over the rest of him. Slowly, he gathered her to him until she was once again across his lap and in his arms.

His head nuzzled into her neck where he yearned to imprint the smell of her perfume on his brain, he began to kiss the skin there, feeling on his lips how soft it was, how smooth. He also noted how shivery it got, with a flush of goosebumps when his tongue darted out to taste her. He wondered if the rest of her body would respond like that?

Making his way from the column of her neck up to her ear along her jawline, Auggie alternately kissed and licked while slowly leaning back until he lay on the bed, Annie laying across him. She never spoke a word. He heard only her breath and small gasps as he hit various sensitive points. While his mouth moved to fit over hers, his hands were busy mapping her body.

From her fingers along her forearms up to the sleeves of her shirt. His fingertips seeked skin, and they moved to her waist where the edge of her top slowly moved up, affording him access to her taut stomach. Her muscles hitched as her breathing deepened, and he smiled at the reaction his touch was having on her.

He needed to feel more, though, and his hands moved up her sides and around to her back, which arched as his fingers massaged up her spine to the band of elastic and fabric just under her shoulder blades. One flick of his fingers, and the material separated. His hands splayed along the expanse of her back, his palms pressing against her shoulders until she lay fully across him.

"Auggie."

His name on her lips sounded like a prayer, but it held undertones of worry. He may not have caught it in the past, but he heard it now, and he stilled for a moment. "Annie?"

"Are you sure? I mean, I don't want to hurt you, and you said the pills make you dizzy."

She was right, of course, and though he wanted to keep on with his exploration, there's no reason he needed to do it now. But he also didn't want to let her go. "I know, but could you just lay here, with me?"

"As if I could let you go now," Annie teased, pushing herself into a sitting position beside him on the bed. She pulled off her shoes and tossed them over the side of the bed. Looking down at Auggie lying beside her, shirtless, his arm reaching out, waiting for her to return, she quickly pulled off her t-shirt and bra.

When she resumed her position lying next to him, she giggled when he realized what she had done.

"That's not fair," Auggie growled. "How am I supposed to relax now?"

"Shh," Annie said, placing her fingers on his lips. "Rest now. I promise, I'll make it up to you later. For now, let's just sleep."

Auggie nodded, but wound his arm around her and pulled her up to lie against his side. It took half a minute for him to will his libido back down to a more manageable level – not an easy task given Annie's half-naked body setting his alight. But soon the effects of his painkillers and the calmness he always felt in Annie's presence took their toll, and he soon fell into a dreamless sleep.

* * *

><p><strong>AN Thanks to everyone who's reading and reviewing and alerting. Someone asked about the role-playing comments in a couple chapters, and what I was alluding to. It's The Princess Bride, where Auggie would play Westley (As you wish...) and Annie would play Buttercup. Westley, as the Dread Pirate Roberts, wore all black and a black mask/scarf around his head. **

**With this chapter, I tried to show how Auggie would react to Annie's proximity if he only had smell and touch and taste to go by. And how Annie's place in his life has given him a bit of peace and eased his anxieties about his sight. :)**

**Please review.**


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N I've been meaning to end this soon, but the deliciousness just won't let me. A few more chapters, I guess. **

**Warning: This chapter verges on more the T-plus. No sex scene, just a few swear words and half-nakedness. **

**Enjoy.**

* * *

><p>Annie stood behind the drinks table, wishing it were just a few inches taller. It came up to her mid-thighs, hiding about half of her exposed skin. It'd have to do for now, she thought, at least until she could find another hiding place.<p>

Why, she thought, why did she insist on the Wonder Woman costume? Auggie begged her to go as Lois Lane as a companion to his Clark Kent/Superman, but she wanted to be a superhero unto herself and dug out her Wonder Woman costume from when she went to Comi-Con a few years back with her college friends.

When she'd emerged from the bathroom in full ensemble – including gold lasso at her hip – Auggie nearly fell out of his chair. She'd expressed her misgivings about the sexy outfit, but Auggie had assured her that Carl's parties were large and mixed, and she'd fit in fine with the crowd.

But, after about a half an hour there, Annie wished she'd gone with the Lois Lane outfit. Mixed crowd, yes, but the other women there were dressed more modestly in more up-to-date outfits. She even had one ask her what she was dressed as. She'd scoffed at the coed's comment before realizing she wasn't kidding.

Annie sighed and refilled her cup from the highly spiked punch bowl. If anything, she thought, she'd enjoy a good buzz to make up for the fact that, besides Auggie and Carl, she knew no one among the few dozen people milling around.

She'd tie herself to Auggie's side, but since he'd arrived, he was surrounded by techno geeks who bombarded him with questions, comments, and, once they learned of his successful Lasik surgery, he began telling the whole story.

Annie wasn't by any stretch of the imagination a wallflower, but at the moment, she sure felt like one. She scanned the crowd again, looking for anyone she might slightly know or perhaps be able to talk to. A foreign language mixed among the conversations in the room caught her ear, and she turned to see a man talking on a cellphone at the other end of the drinks table.

By his highly stylized and shiny outfit, Annie knew immediately that he was dressed as Aladdin. His midnight black hair and dark caramel skin set off the white fabric beautifully, and Annie found herself intrigued. Partly because of his looks, but mostly because she recognized the language he spoke into his cellphone.

She wasn't fluent in Hindi, but had a good enough grasp to understand a bit of what he was saying. She hadn't heard the language for about a year, when she'd traveled through the Middle East.

Her intense study of him must have gotten his attention, because he suddenly turned and caught her gaze. Embarrassed, Annie gave a smile and returned to her punch.

"Hello."

Aladdin had hung up his cellphone and walked up to her, rounding the table as he went so he wound up just a few feet away. "Well, hello, Wonder Woman. Or do you go by Diana these days?"

Annie blinked up at him, surprise evident on her face. "Wow, not only do you know I'm dressed as Wonder Woman, but you know her secret identity?"

Aladdin shrugged. "Who doesn't?"

Annie laughed, "Apparently, half the people here. Nobody has any respect for the classics anymore."

"Except you and me. My name's Jai, Jai Wilcox," he said, extending his right hand to her.

Annie shook it, "Annie Walker. Nice to meet you. So, was that Hindi I heard you speaking?"

"Yes, I was talking with my father. How did you –"

"I traveled through India last year and picked up some of the language," Annie explained.

"Really?" Jai asked with a smirk.

"I did. Not enough to be fluent in it like I am Spanish and Russian, but –"

"Okay, okay, I believe you," Jai said, holding his hands up in surrender. "How many languages are you fluent in?"

* * *

><p>Auggie was finishing up the story of how well his Lasik surgery went for maybe the fourth time that night when he realized Annie wasn't anywhere near him. He figured she'd snuck off to the bathroom, but it'd been longer than a few minutes.<p>

"Excuse me, have you seen Annie?" he asked The Flash – he couldn't remember the man's name.

"You mean Wonder Woman? Hottie's over there by the punch bowl, getting hit on by Wilcox," The Flash said.

Auggie would've stayed and set the guy to rights about Hottie's status as his fiancee, but once he heard the name Wilcox, he began extricating himself from the group surrounding him and heading across the room.

He knew Jai Wilcox by reputation only, but that was enough to make him worried for Annie's safety. Even if Jai saw Annie's engagement ring, it'd hardly keep him from making a pass. He trusted Annie, but the drinks were flowing free tonight, and just about everyone was buzzing happily and getting louder.

As he neared the drinks table, what he saw made his heartbeat nearly double as it pounded through his veins. He hoped it was just the effects of the alcohol that made a flare of jealousy well up in him. If it wasn't, it meant he didn't trust Annie, didn't trust in their love or commitment to one another.

But the facts were right in front of him. Wilcox, over-dressed in what Auggie figured was a jodhpuri suit that he tried to pass off as Aladdin, was standing way too close to Annie. And though she gave no visible vibes that she was falling for his exotic charm, she was giving him a smile that Auggie swore she'd reserved only for him.

He didn't bother waiting for a pause in their conversation, but just rounded to the back of it where they stood and came right up behind Annie, sliding his hands around her waist and pulling her to him.

He knew she was startled by the unannounced embrace, but he whispered, "Hey, Wonder Woman. How about we find a phone booth?"

Annie jerked at the sudden contact, but once Auggie whispered into her ear, she visibly relaxed, laying her hands on his arms as they encirled her waist. "Auggie, thought I'd lost you to the Justice League over there."

Auggie chuckled and nuzzled her neck with his nose before looking up at Jai. "Oh, sorry, didn't see you standing there. Jai, right?"

Auggie saw Jai's megawatt smile dim, and he puffed his chest out in male satisfaction. The effect worked, as his Superman costume mirrored his prized collectible of Clark Kent in a suit, his button-up shirt ripping open to show the lycra "S." Auggie knew he wasn't a true man of steel, but he took care of himself, and the tight fabric fit his chest quite well.

"Yes, Jai Wilcox. Anderson?"

Auggie removed his hand from around Annie's waist to shake Jai's extended one. "I take it you've already met my fiancee?"

"Yes, we were just talking about my homeland."

Auggie nodded, then turned his attention back to Annie, who leaned back against him. "Sweetie, are you having a good time?"

Annie shut her eyes as she reveled in his embrace. She'd lost count of the amount of punch she drank, but it was more than enough to throw off her equilibrium. "Now that you're here, I am."

Out of the corner of his eye, Auggie saw Wilcox move away. "Why were you standing back here? And talking to Jai of all people?" he murmured, his arms pulling her closer to him.

"You were busy," Annie said. "And what's wrong with me talking to Jai? He seemed nice enough."

Annie's nearness and her costume – or lack thereof – was having an uplifting effect on Auggie's libido, and he turned her in his arms. Which, he soon found out, wasn't the best decision as her cleavage, constrained as it was in the tight, corseted costume, threatened to spill out as she pressed up against him.

"Auggie?" she asked, lifting her arms to place them on his shoulders. "You didn't answer my question. What's wrong with my talking to Jai? He's about the only one here I have anything in common with."

Her full weight was by now full on Auggie, and he staggered back a few steps until his back hit the wall. He melted into it and pulled her more against him, his hands sliding down to her hips. He clenched his fingers, pulling her between his legs. "You have me," he growled out before lowering his mouth to hers.

Annie was about to argue his point when his lips crashed against her partially opened mouth. It was almost an angry kiss, with undertones of possession and jealousy. Normally Annie would be turned off by such a display of he-man behavior, but the effects of the alcohol, the late night and his costume which fulfilled a couple of her fantasies made her inhibitions fade into the background.

Her hands dove into his wavy brown hair, effectively knocking his lens-less glasses off his nose. She caught them and stuffed them into his pocket before returning back to her task of kissing every inch of his face.

"Mine," Auggie growled into her mouth.

"Yours," Annie whispered back. "Can we get out of here?"

* * *

><p>As soon as the cab pulled up in front of Auggie's building, he jumped out, dragging Annie along with him. He threw a couple of $20s at the driver, hoping that'd be enough to cover the fare, and walked quickly to the side to unlock the door to the building.<p>

His grip on Annie's hand was forceful, but he couldn't wait any longer. It'd been four hours since he first saw her in the Wonder Woman outfit, and though he managed to suppress his desire while he was sober, the alcohol he'd downed loosened his control considerably.

Then when he saw Wilcox nearly drooling over her, something in him snapped, and he wanted nothing more than to take her home and –

"Auggie, slow down," Annie said, nearly tripping over her boots as Auggie took the steps two at a time up to their apartment. To his credit, Auggie stopped long enough for her to catch up, and after a few more steps and fumbling with his keys in the lock, they were inside.

Annie knew what he wanted. His desire matched hers, and she wanted nothing more than to rip the rest of his suit and shirt off to reveal her own personal Superman.

But when she walked into the apartment, taking a few steps past to allow him to shut and locked the door, he grabbed her wrist again and pulled her backwards.

"Auggie, what are you –"

The rest of her question never made it past her lips as he pressed her against the door and proceeded to kiss the breath out of her. He caught both of her wrists and placed them above her head, muttering, "Stay," against her lips as his hands slid down her bare arms. The costume, modeled after the classic one Lynda Carter wore on the tv show, left little to the imagination, resembling a strapless one-piece swimsuit.

Hauling his head back to catch his breath, Auggie panted as his hands slid down her sides. His fingers felt the catch of a zipper, and he smiled in satisfaction, jerking it down. His enthusiasm, however, did more than separate the fabric as a rending sound could be heard.

Annie froze at hearing the tearing of fabric. She looked down to see that Auggie not only pulled down the zipper of the corseted top, but the rest of the fabric, as well, effectively ripping the top completely apart.

"Auggie!" she yelled, dropping her arms down to her outfit and pushing herself away from the door. "What have you done?"

He tried reaching for her again, once the fabric slid off into her hands, revealing her skimpy strapless bra. The lower half of her costume remained in place, and his fingers went to her belt, but she batted his hands away.

"I can't believe you tore it!" Annie cried.

"It's just a costume, Annie," Auggie said, confused as to her abrupt change of attitude.

"It's a classic! Do you know how hard it was to find this? And now it's ruined!" Annie stalked over to the bedroom area, plopping herself on the bed, the top in her hands.

Effectively cock-blocked, Auggie took a deep breath to get some oxygen back into his lungs after the makeout session and walked across the room to her. He shed his suit jacket and button-up shirt, leaving his skintight Superman tee on as he sat next to her.

The drunken passion that'd been driving him the past hour slid away, and he ran his hands over her hair, plucking the tiara out and setting it next to him. He then gently pulled her to him, until her head was nestled onto his chest.

"I'm sorry," he murmured, his lips against her hair. "For ripping your costume and for going all neanderthal on you."

Annie let out a chuckle. "You can go neanderthal on me all you want, but I'd rather it be because you want to," she said, folding the material up and letting it drop to the floor. "If this is what jealousy does to you, I'm going to have to budget more for clothing."

Auggie tucked his hand under her chin to tilt her face up to his. "Then you aren't angry at me?"

"Well, I wasn't until you ripped my outfit," Annie said. "And it's not fair you took off your suit already. I wanted to do that."

"Oh, really?"

"Duh, yeah," Annie said, rolling her eyes. "How often does a girl get a chance to unmask Clark Kent?"

Auggie grinned and stood up quickly, retrieving his shirt and jacket. He buttoned the shirt completely up, covering the Superman tee and slid the jacket on. He also retrieved the glasses she'd removed and slid them on his face.

The effect complete, he turned back to Annie, who sat on the bed in practically her underwear. "Miss – Miss Lane, if there's anything I can do to rectify your torn garment," he said, shuffling his feet and looking down at the floor. "Maybe we – I could call up a 24-hour tailor for you?"

More than ever, Annie wished she hadn't been so adamant about going as Wonder Woman. Auggie's dead-on impression of Christopher Reeve's Clark Kent set her heart racing. She'd teased him the past few months about role-playing, and although she'd envisioned him as Westley from "Princess Bride," with her as Buttercup, she'd never again picture him as anything but her own personal Superman.

Deliberately, she stood, picking up her ripped corset as she walked towards him. "I'm not sure it can be fixed," she said. "Unless you have some sort of superhero ability to mend fabric with your laser eyes or something."

Auggie's lips twitched with a smile, but he kept up the ruse. "Oh, I don't know about that," he said.

"You know," Annie said, looking down at her less-than-attire and his fully dressed body, "One of us is awfully overdressed for the situation."

"Do you want me to get you a sweater?" Auggie asked, his fingers twitching beside him.

Annie shook her head, and she lifted her hands to his face, sliding his glasses off. A hint of déjà vu came to her as she remembered that day she'd done the same thing before their first kiss. This time, however, she knew he wouldn't stop her.

She folded the glasses and stuck them in the breast pocket of his jacket before moving her hands underneath, sliding it off of his shoulders.

Once the material hit the floor, her fingers were on the buttons of his shirt. Annie feigned surprise as the shirt parted, revealing bright blue fabric with a majestic red and yellow "S."

"Clark, what's the meaning of this? You mean to say –"

Auggie couldn't take the pretend any longer and ripped his shirt off, the tinkle of a couple of buttons hitting the hardwood floor echoing. "Miss Lane, I can explain everything," he said.

"No explanation needed," Annie said, running her hands over his muscular chest. "I had an inkling that there was more to you than a cute geek. All I had to do was just peel away the layers."

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><p><strong>AN Nice and long chapter, too. Hope you enjoyed it.**

**How'd you like the appearance of Jai? :)**

**Please review.**


	24. Chapter 24

Annie groaned as she read Danielle's latest e-mail. She leaned back in her chair and pulled her foot up on the seat. "Oh, no, no, no."

"Something wrong?" Auggie asked from his place on the couch, where he was flipping through his latest delivery of anime books he'd received..

"You could say that," Annie said with a hollow laugh. "She's sent over another list for our wedding plans. This one deals with what overall theme we want. We have to pick our top five and get back to her."

"Top five?" Auggie asked. "How many did she send?"

"Fifteen," Annie said with a sigh, closing the e-mail. "She's gotta be kidding. How difficult could planning one wedding be? You invite a few people, get a minister, a license, and voila."

"Honey," Auggie said, walking up to her. He placed his hands on her shoulders and began kneading the tense muscles there. "Remember, you were the one who told her she could play wedding planner."

"No, she offered, and I said sure," Annie corrected. The feel of Auggie's hands on her began to ease her anxiety, and she closed her eyes. "Now I can't seem to stop her."

Bending down to her side, Auggie took her hand into his. "You don't have to – We don't have to do anything we don't want."

"But I don't want to disappointment her. She seems hellbent on making up for embarrassing you at dinner, remember?"

Auggie nodded. "Yes, I remember, but this is our wedding, our life together. Six months ago, I never even imagined finding someone to share my life with. Now that I have –" Auggie sighed and looked down at their entwined hands. "Whether we get married in front of a thousand people or just live together, like this, for the rest of our lives, it doesn't matter. You pulled me out of the little bubble of life I used to live in, Annie. As long as you're in my future, I don't care how we get there."

Had his eyes not been on their entwined hands, Auggie would've seen the tears welling up in Annie's eyes at his heartfelt confession. Never before had she heard anything so beautiful, and the words coming from someone she loved and directed to her would've brought her to her knees had she been standing.

"Auggie?"

"Hmm?"

"I don't want a big wedding."

Auggie looked back up to her, her big brown eyes shiny with tears. "You don't?"

Annie shook her head, "No, I don't. I'd want nothing more in the world than to stand on the highest mountaintop and proclaim my love for you, but the effort itself of pledging our lives to each other? I'd much rather do that in private."

"So what are you saying? You want to elope?" he asked, trying not to show his enthusiasm for the idea. Ever since Annie told him about Danielle's offer, his anxiety level had spiked. He really wanted no part of tuxedos and groomsmen and maids of honor and a church full of flowers.

Annie half-laughed and said, "Could we?"

"Now that Carl's Fall semester has ended, he's back at the shop. I'm sure he could watch the place for a couple of days."

"You've been thinking about this, haven't you?" she asked.

"The idea of whisking you away to Las Vegas has popped into my head a time or two," Auggie confessed. "And not just for their drive-thru wedding chapels. Remember, you said you'd never been there."

As the idea seeped into Annie's head, she began to think of how much easier it would be if they did elope and break the news to everyone later. All of the trappings of a wedding never really appealed to her – well, except for the final part of being announced as Mrs. Anderson.

Auggie could see the wheels spinning in Annie's head, and he nearly held his breath, waiting for her answer. "I know it's a couple of weeks before Christmas, and we probably couldn't have a proper honeymoon, but maybe after New Year's? My passport's just itching to be used."

Annie smiled at that, remembering one of Danielle's ideas of having a destination wedding. Annie had shot her down immediately. "It would be nice to get out of the cold weather for a few days," she said.

"I'm not sure what the weather is like in Nevada, but –"

"Let's do it."

"What? Really?"

Annie jumped out of her chair and stood, pulling Auggie up with her. "Yeah, I've got more than enough frequent flier miles to cover us both for a round trip."

Auggie wrapped his arms around her in a bear hug, and as the idea settled in that they're getting married in a matter of hours, if not a couple of days, he lifted her, swinging her around until she squealed.

* * *

><p>"And do you, Anne Catherine Walker, take August William Anderson as your husband?"<p>

Annie looked from the minister/Elvis impersonator to Auggie, who looked down at her with such love, devotion and happiness in her eyes, she couldn't help but say, "I do."

Auggie was sure his jaw would crack soon from smiling so much, but he couldn't help it. Here they were, in Vegas, getting married by a half-decent Elvis impersonator, yet he couldn't imagine things being anymore perfect.

"Then by the authority vested in me by the state of Nevada, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may – well, I guess I don't have to tell you what to do next," 'Elvis' said with a chuckle as the well-dressed couple in front of him launched themselves at each other.

The couples waiting in the pews behind him began to hoot and holler as the blonde in a one-shouldered red skintight dress and the curly-haired man in a maroon silk shirt and black pants went clearly beyond the normal marital kiss and began pawing at each other.

Auggie became dimly aware of whistling and catcalls and pulled reluctantly away from Annie to see the other couples clapping and hooting. He looked back at Elvis and said, "Sorry."

"No problem, son. Good luck."

Auggie nodded and began to usher Annie back down the aisle when she stopped him.

"Wait a minute!" Annie said, pulling him back toward Elvis. She retrieved her cell from her purse. "I've gotta get a picture of this. Elvis, do you mind?"

"Not at all, darling."

* * *

><p>Danielle was busy surfing wedding websites when her cell beeped, signifying the receipt of a new e-mail.<p>

"God, it's about time, Annie," she murmured. "Been waiting for your list of choices."

Instead of an e-mail full of text, though, it seemed to be just a picture attached. She waited for it to download and screamed aloud when it came into view. Annie and Auggie, gold rings held aloft, smiling at her with – oh, my God, she thought. Was that Elvis standing between them?

Another ding signified an additional e-mail, and Danielle pulled it up immediately.

"Sorry, Danielle, but Auggie and I decided to elope. We'll be home soon. Love you!"

Another scream emanated from Danielle's lips, and she heard the sound of small feet running into the living room.

"Mom, what's wrong?" Katia said.

"Your Aunt Annie," Danielle said, holding the phone aloft to show her youngest, "has gotten married. Without me!"

"Yay!" Katia yelled. "That means we can call Auggie Uncle Auggie! Hey, Chloe!"

Danielle slumped into her chair as her daughter ran out of the room. Of course, she knew nothing about the hours Danielle had spent online researching wedding planning.

She was still brooding when another ding sounded. She picked her cell up half-heartedly to see another e-mail, this one from Auggie.

"Danielle, sorry for dropping this on you and ruining your plans. Annie and I just wanted to do this without all the hype and trappings of a big ceremony. We'll be home in a couple of days. Annie says to say she loves you. Auggie."

Danielle took a deep breath and began to compose a reply.

"Auggie and Annie, Congratulations! Though I am a bit disappointed, I can't stay mad, especially since you look so happy in the picture. Looking forward to your coming back home. Katia and Chloe can't wait to have their Aunt Annie and Uncle Auggie back. Love, Danielle."

THE END

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><p><strong>AN Now, that's a satisfying end. What do y'all think?**


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